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Catholicism

Pope Benedict XVI greets the crowd from the central balcony of St. Peter's Basilica at the Vatican, soon after his election, April 19, 2005.

Pope Benedict XVI was an icon of conservative Catholicism, theology professor says

Religion

Funeral services were held for Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI on Thursday. Massimo Faggioli, a professor of historical theology at Villanova University, discusses the late pontiff’s legacy with The World’s host Carol Hills.

A Virgin Mary statue in a public square in France

The state of religion in France

Sacred Nation
Believers take part in a weekend service at an underground Catholic church in the Chinese city of Tianjin on November 10, 2013.

The Vatican seems to be keen for a deal with Beijing

Religion
For two years, Ismail al-Kanon and his mother, Jandar Nasi, were captives of ISIS. More than most living under the terror group’s rule, they had reason to expect that they would never escape — because they were Iraqi Christians.

How an Iraqi Christian teenager survived two years in the heart of the ISIS ‘caliphate’

Conflict
Mother Teresa statue in Kolkata

Songs and celebrations in Kolkata for Mother Teresa’s sainthood

Belief
Pope Francis with cardinals as he arrives to lead the synod on the family at the Vatican October 9, 2015.

When in Rome…

Belief

Pope Francis has switched the official language of Vatican doctrine from Latin to Italian. He’s also democratized his meetings with bishops. So why do some conservative bishops believe that contentious reforms are being deliberately lost in translation?

Francis greets the crowd outside of the Vatican in Rome on September 5, 2015.

Everybody loves Pope Francis, even atheists

Belief

It’s hardly surprising that an overwhelming majority of Catholics love Pope Francis. But the appeal of this particular pope extends to many non-Catholics as well.

A ‘No’ campaigner, opposed to the legalization of same-sex marriage, delivers his message on the sidewalk in Dublin on May 20, 2015.

Ireland’s same-sex marriage vote puts the Catholic Church on the defensive

Belief

Ireland appears to set to take yet another step away from deep Roman Catholic roots when it votes on a constitutional referendum this week on same-sex marriage.

A woman in Plaza Miranda, outside Quiapo Church in Manila, sells off her dwindling stock of Pope Francis t-shirts in advance of the Pope's visit to the Philippines.

Filipino Catholics welcome Pope Francis with fervency, hope and souvenir T-shirts

Belief

When Pope Francis holds a Catholic Mass in Manila this weekend, he’s expected to draw up to six million people. But there are conflicting hopes and expectations for what he’ll say to Asia’s most populous Catholic country.

Pope smiling in Feb 2014

Will the Pope shift the church’s stance on divorce?

Lifestyle & Belief

Divorced Catholics who remarry are not allowed to take communion. And that exclusion may well be reconsidered as Pope Francis develops his plans for reforming the church, according to Boston Globe columnist and author James Carroll.