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It’s lunch time on a summer Monday, and yet another group of foreigners is putting on wetsuits at one of the many surfing schools that dot the Praia Grande beach on the coastline of Sintra, Portugal. A lot of European groups come to ride the waves in Portugal’s surfing hotspot. But there is somethin...

Adult baptisms in Germany rose significantly last year, while overall baptism numbers dropped, the German bishops’ conference said this month.Cathedral of the Holy Trinity, Dresden. Credit: Diego Grandi / Alamy.Subscribe nowThere were 2,650 adults and young adults baptized in Germany in 2025, accord...

Hey everybody,Two things can be true at once.Take Tibet.Tibetan people have a litany of legitimate grievances against the Chinese Communist Party, and Beijing’s human rights record in Tibet is deeply troubling, especially where freedom of religion, culture, speech, and conscience are concerned. Ther...

The head of the Armenian Apostolic Church faced a courtroom last week, as Catholicos Karekin II faces obstruction of justice charges alongside five other Armenian bishops, as the latest in a long-running and complex dispute between Armenian Apostolic prelates and Armenia’s prime minister.Catholicos...

Image: Saint Lawrence | Bernardo Cavallino Saint of the Day for August 10 (c. 225 – August 10, 258) Saint Lawrence’s Story The esteem in which the Church holds Lawrence is seen in the fact that today’s celebration ranks as a feast. We know very little about his life. He is one of those whose martyrd...

On Aug. 11, the Catholic Church celebrates St. Clare of Assisi, one of the most beloved saints of the Middle Ages. Best known as the founder of the Poor Clares and a close friend of St. Francis of Assisi, Clareʼs life was marked by radical trust in God, profound Eucharistic devotion, and remarkable...

Pope Leo XIV on Aug. 11 named eight new members, including four laypeople, to the Council for the Economy, the body that oversees the administrative and financial structures and activities of the Roman Curia and institutions connected to the Holy See.The council also approves the annual budget and t...

Amid the devastation of a 7.4-magnitude earthquake that struck western Colombia on Aug. 10, Pope Leo XIV has sent his condolences to all victims of the disaster and assured them of his closeness.In a telegram dated Aug. 11 and signed by Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the pope expressed...

Pope Leo XIV has chosen “Disarming Technology, Serving Peace. Politics as Preventive Responsibility” as the theme of the 2027 World Day of Peace. The theme will be part of the celebrations for the 60th World Day of Peace, observed on Jan. 1, 2027, the Vatican’s Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human...

Unique among world leaders, the pope serves simultaneously as the universal spiritual head of the Catholic Church and as the head of the Holy See, a distinct sovereign entity under international law that serves as the central government of the Catholic Church.So what do these multiple roles mean in...