Catholic News Service

The Vatican Secretariat of State sent a formal statement to the French Embassy to the Holy See reaffirming that Pope Francis had sent a top Vatican official to investigate a French religious congregation and warning that interference by a French civil court in an internal church matter could be a "serious violation" of religious freedom.

The two major events taking place in Rome for the March 8, 2024, celebration of International Women's Day were a daylong conference on "women leaders" sponsored by the British and Australian embassies to the Holy See and Caritas Internationalis and a two-day conference on women as "builders of humanity" hosted by the Pontifical University of the Holy Cross and co-sponsored by several pontifical universities.

St. Thérèse of Lisieux, long one of Pope Francis' favorite saints, teaches Christians "the little way" of love, self-giving, concern for others and complete trust in the mercy of God, the pope said in a new document.

Finding better ways to live "like Jesus did" — reaching out, welcoming, healing and including others — was the focus of Sr. Liliana Franco Echeverri's small group discussions Oct. 9-10 at the assembly of the Synod of Bishops, she said.

Pope Francis has appointed a woman for the first time to be the No. 2 official of the Roman Curia office that works with religious orders and their members.

An order of women religious has been recognized for extraordinary efforts to bring Jesus Christ to those suffering the ravages of Russia's war in Ukraine.

Pope Francis has accepted the resignation of 59-year-old Bishop Franco Mulakkal of Jalandhar, India, who was acquitted last year on charges of raping a nun but may face further legal action since the nun has appealed the verdict.

Dominican Sr. Helen Alford has been a member of the academy since 2020 and will be the third woman to lead the group of scholars.

With a degree of credibility that "seems to be very high," another 14 women and one man have reported to the Jesuits that they were spiritually, psychologically or sexually abused by Jesuit Fr. Marko Rupnik, a well-known mosaic artist and spiritual director.

Young people must be "missionaries of human dignity" to fight human trafficking and all forms of exploitation, Pope Francis said.

Many Christians who died for the faith did so not because they were denied the freedom to worship, but because they were living out their faith and defending freedom, justice and truth, Pope Francis said.

Sr. Margaret Smyth, a fervent advocate for the poor and migrant communities and who led an apostolate serving Spanish-speaking immigrants in eastern Long Island for 23 years, died Dec. 19.

When Nicole Swannack signed up for an online book club with the National Shrine of St. Elizabeth Ann Seton last spring, she thought she might learn more about her faith and the life of America's first native-born saint and maybe make a new friend.

Nigerian sisters and their communities are raising awareness about violence against women and child abuse and spreading their prevention mechanisms among young people in Nigeria.

Rwandan Cardinal Antoine Kambanda beatified Sr. Maria Carola Cecchin,  who served in Kenya about 100 years ago. Beatification is one of the final steps toward sainthood.

A small Catholic school run by the Sisters of St. Joseph the Worker in Walton, Kentucky, is thriving, despite the small student body and the small number of sisters who run the school.

Helen Prejean, a Sister of St. Joseph, shows no signs of slowing down in her long-standing fight to end the death penalty.

At a special Mass, members of the U.S. Navy, Marine Corps, Coast Guard, Merchant Marines and Public Health Service joined others in prayer to thank St. Elizabeth Ann Seton for her protection and to ask for her continued intercession.

In Indianapolis, four sisters of the congregation founded by St. Teresa of Kolkata have lived, prayed and served those in need in a poverty-stricken neighborhood on the near east side of Indianapolis since 2000.

Organizations led by women religious in the U.S. as well as other Catholic institutions denounced those who threaten democracy and efforts that make it difficult for some U.S. citizens to vote.