For more than a decade, Ellie Hidalgo has been campaigning to expand the role of women in the Catholic Church.

The Miami woman is co-director of a nonprofit, Discerning Deacons, which invites other Catholics to consider ordaining women as deacons — a clergy role that has already been opened to married men. That would allow women for the first...Read more

CHICAGO — Anti-abuse activists lodged a Vatican complaint Thursday in response to a $2 million lawsuit settled by a New Lenox Catholic school and the Augustinian religious order, alleging that the “actions and inaction” by Chicagoland Catholic leaders in handling the accused priest is endangering kids.

Former Providence Catholic High ...Read more

BALTIMORE — Survivors are pushing back against a February deadline proposed by the Archdiocese of Baltimore for potential victims to provide proof of claims of child sex abuse in the Catholic Church’s bankruptcy case.

In a filing Wednesday, attorneys for the creditors committee, a group of seven abuse survivors selected to represent the ...Read more

Pope Francis canceled his Saturday appointments after experiencing “slight flu-like” conditions, but a CT scan revealed no pulmonary issues, the Vatican said.

The 86-year-old pontiff went to Rome’s Gemelli hospital early Saturday afternoon to undergo a CT scan on his lungs “to rule out the risk of pulmonary complications,” the Holy ...Read more

CHICAGO — A Catholic religious order has agreed to pay $2.9 million to settle claims of child sexual assault by a Catholic brother and former teacher that allegedly continued occurring after the student brought the claims to the attention of upper administration at Mount Carmel High School.

The settlement with the Order of the Carmelites, ...Read more

ATLANTA — Kelly Garrett Glanton was christened at Carrollton First United Methodist Church in 1963.

Sixty years later, she watched her 3-month-old granddaughter get baptized in the family church.

Her granddaughter will probably be one of the last family members to be baptized at Carrollton First UMC, which voted to leave the denomination. ...Read more

Four decades ago, during the heyday of Bethlehem Lutheran Church in West Oakland, California, hundreds would show up for worship on Sundays. The grand sanctuary of the historic Black church, with its stained glass windows and elegant wooden pews, got so full, if you arrived five minutes late it was standing room only.

These days, as many Black ...Read more

WASHINGTON — As a congressman of faith, Mike Johnson is hardly alone. Like the new Republican speaker, 88% of House members called themselves Christian at the start of the 118th Congress. Like him, a majority are Protestants. Breaking it down further, Johnson is one of 57 Baptists, making it the second largest denomination in the House, behind...Read more

BALTIMORE — A court-ordered ban on lawsuits against Baltimore-area Catholic schools and parishes will remain in place indefinitely as attorneys for sexual abuse victims and the Archdiocese of Baltimore continue to work through the early stages of the archdiocese’s bankruptcy.

The extension of the injunction, which has been in place since ...Read more

BALTIMORE — Diamonds and emeralds, marble busts and oil paintings, sterling silver flatware and an ivory crucifix — these are just some of the things the Archdiocese of Baltimore possesses in its treasure chest of valuables.

The items, including rings, precious gemstones, gold and silver chains, and antique furniture, were disclosed as part...Read more

LOS ANGELES — A federal grand jury in Los Angeles has indicted Naasón Joaquín García on two child pornography counts, in yet another legal challenge for the head of the Mexico-based La Luz del Mundo megachurch who is already serving a 17-year state prison sentence for sexually abusing girls from his congregation.

García was indicted this ...Read more

ATLANTA — Roughly two weeks into the start of a war that has claimed the lives of thousands of people across Israel and Gaza, waves of pain keep washing over Americans, especially those with personal connections to the region.

Israeli and Jewish communities have united in sorrow. Palestinian-American residents are rattled and anxious.

At the...Read more

LEXINGTON, Ky. — A Lexington man who is dedicated to helping the Catholic Church reach out to the LGBTQ community says he has received a personal note from Pope Francis.

Stan “JR” Zerkowski, who works in local and national outreach efforts, said he wrote the pope earlier this month, and two days later received a handwritten response from ...Read more

One doesn't have to be Roman Catholic to appreciate the challenges facing Pope Francis or the courage he has shown in meeting them. Now the church is beginning a three-week synod in Rome, where participants will tackle such questions as the role of women in church governance, celibacy of the clergy and the church's stance toward the LGBTQ ...Read more

Being a drag queen isn’t a hobby for James Admans. It’s a religious calling.

Johnson, a drag queen who spends most of their life as James Admans, has started an “drag church” organization, Theology Queen, LLC.

Admans calls themselves a “queer minister,” preaches unapologetically and peppers business promotions with phrases such as,...Read more

Kenneth Earl Wilson, who had worked at a bank and in the houseboat industry in Somerset, grew up in the days when it was unheard of in Appalachian Kentucky to consider anything besides a traditional burial when someone died.

His daughter, Kendra Wilson, said he had bought a cemetery plot, and she assumed he would be buried there. But late in ...Read more

PHILADELPHIA -- The witches circled an altar in the shadow of Clark Park’s sycamores last month, orange street light illuminating their black hats and robes.

“By the anointing with this sacred oil, may your spirit come into attunement with the energies of the moon,” said Jim “Raven” Stefanowicz, high priest of the South Street Circle,...Read more

BALTIMORE — The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Baltimore’s plan to pay sex abuse victims through bankruptcy became more clear Tuesday, with lawyers for the church saying parishes and schools would have to contribute funds to a larger settlement for survivors.

Those payments, along with money from the archdiocese itself and from insurance ...Read more