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Justin McLellan

Justin McLellan is an Ecuadorian American journalist based in Rome with Catholic News Service, the news agency of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops. He holds a bachelor's degree in philosophy and theology from the University of Notre Dame. Follow him on Twitter: @McLellan_Js

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Pope clears way for 3 new saints, including first woman from Venezuela

Pope Francis has cleared the way for the canonizations of three blesseds: an Armenian Catholic archbishop martyred during the Armenian genocide, a lay catechist from Papua New Guinea killed during World War II and a Venezuelan religious sister who dedicated her life to education and the poor.

Sister Carneiro stands smiling, behind her, out of focus, is St. Peter's facade and dome.

Mind and heart: Church must combat mental health crisis, sister says

"The church has always been in spaces with people in extremely fragile situations, always," said Sister Idília Carneiro, the new superior general of the Sisters Hospitallers, and as global rates of mental illness continue to rise, she insisted that Catholics have an obligation to expand their ministries in addressing the crisis.

Upper portion of black-mantled, and haloed Virgin of Sorrows.

Vatican approves devotion at site of Marian apparition in Spain

Cardinal Víctor Manuel Fernández, dicastery prefect, authorized the local archbishop to issue a document so that the Shrine of Our Lady of Sorrows of Chandavila can "continue to offer to the faithful who wish to approach it, a place of interior peace, consolation, and conversion." The cardinal's letter titled, "A Light in Spain," was approved by the pope during an audience Aug. 22 and was published on the dicastery's website Aug. 23.

Four young people, two wearing red, hold sheets of paper

Pope calls on young people to fight trafficking by promoting dignity

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

Loreto Sr. Pat Murray gives introductory remarks at the International Union of Superiors General's launch of the statement "Sisters for the Environment: Integrating Voices from the Margins" on Nov. 3 at UISG headquarters in Rome. (Justin McLellan)

Sisters urge leaders at UN summits to listen to the margins amid climate crisis

Catholic sisters are calling on the global development community to engage with them in "promoting and realizing integral environmental solutions" at the COP27 U.N. climate summit and the COP15 U.N. biodiversity summit.