VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- Carrying a tall wooden cross over the threshold of the Holy Door in St. Peter's Basilica, a U.S. delegation brought the concerns of the country's Hispanic Catholics to the heart of the church.     In a political climate marked by angry rhetoric, fear and divisio...
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VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- The church is not just for people who are good, who think they're good or pretend to be good, it is for everyone, especially the bad because the church is mercy, Pope Francis said.    No one is excluded from God's forgiveness, even the worst sinners, who only mu...
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VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- God wants people to be merciful, which means forgiving others and giving freely with love, Pope Francis said.    "We don't have the power to condemn our brother who makes a mistake, we are not above him. Rather we have a duty to return him to the dignity of a so...
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WASHINGTON (CNS) -- Campaign 2016 is shaping up to be one where voters are not so much supporting one candidate or another as casting a ballot against a candidate they find intolerable.    Or they may not vote for president at all.    Underlying anger and deep-seated d...
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VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- Clergy who use their position for personal gain rather than to help those in need do not follow the spirit of Jesus who took upon himself the sufferings of others, Pope Francis said.     Jesus often would rebuke such leaders and warned his followers to "do what...
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VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- With a large tapestry bearing the portrait of the woman known as the "Saint of the Gutters" suspended above him, Pope Francis proclaimed the sainthood of Mother Teresa of Kolkata, hailing her courage and love for the poor.    Despite the formality of the occasio...
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VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- Religions can play an important role in protecting the environment and defending human rights in their countries, their communities and their schools, Pope Francis said.     "I believe we are still at a nursery-school level in this. That is, in incorporating res...
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VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- Peace cannot be achieved by huge protests or international conferences unless it begins in people's hearts, Pope Francis said.     Men and women are called to build peace every day "in the little things" in life, the pope said Sept. 8 during morning Mass in the...
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VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- Though generally renown for Gregorian chant, curating libraries and offering quiet retreats, some Benedictine monks also brew beer, run farms or play electric guitar, like Abbot Primate Nokter Wolf.    Ending his third and final term as leader of the confederati...
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VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- Honoring Star Trek's 50th anniversary, the Vatican newspaper said the overwhelmingly popular series gave the world a model of peace, tolerance and cooperation at a time of global tensions.    The show -- whose first episode aired Sept. 8, 1966 -- began during th...
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