Faith Wire

Pope Francis indicated Friday that he will seek to have the church act "with determination" against clergy sex abuse cases. Read more »

The John Templeton Foundation says it has awarded South African Archbishop Desmond Tutu one of the world's leading religion prizes. Read more »

A Jesus portrait that has hung in a southern Ohio school district since 1947 was taken down Wednesday, because of concerns about the potential costs of a federal lawsuit against its display. Read more »

A new Gaza law mandating separate classrooms for boys and girls from age nine is another worrisome sign that the territory's Islamic militant Hamas rulers are gradually imposing their... Read more »

Catholics and Protestants flocked to churches to celebrate Easter on Sunday in the Holy Land and across the broader Middle East, praying, singing and rejoicing. Read more »

Pope Francis delivered a plea for peace in his first Easter Sunday message to the world, decrying seemingly endless conflicts in the Middle East and on the Korean peninsula after celebrating Mass... Read more »

Pope Francis celebrated a trimmed back Easter Vigil service Saturday after having reached out to Muslims and women during a Holy Week in which he began to put his mark on the Catholic Church. Read more »

Holding a Bible in her arms at the start of Holy Week, seamstress Maria Munoz waited patiently to visit the tomb of the man she considers another savior of humanity. Read more »

President Barack Obama is wishing a joyful Easter to those who celebrate the resurrection of Jesus Christ. Read more »

Indonesian Christians carry a bamboo cross during a Good Friday procession to reenact Jesus' path to crucifixion. At the Vatican, Pope Francis lies down in prayer during the Passion of Christ Mass... Read more »

Hundreds of Christians streamed through the cobblestone alleyways of Jerusalem's Old City on Friday, hoisting wooden crosses and chanting prayers to mark the crucifixion of Jesus. Read more »

Nick Emery — a three-time Utah state champion and two-time state high school player of the year — was courted by college basketball super-powers UCLA, Kansas and North Carolina. Read more »

Anti-Muslim mobs rampaged through three more towns in Myanmar's predominantly Buddhist heartland over the weekend, destroying mosques and burning dozens of homes despite government efforts to stem... Read more »

The new archbishop of Canterbury was formally enthroned Thursday — and questions about the Church of England's opposition to same-sex marriage greeted his promotion. Read more »

A wave of bombings tore through the Baghdad area Tuesday, killing 57 people on the eve of the 10th anniversary of the U.S.-led invasion and showing how unstable Iraq remains more than a year after... Read more »

Argentines holding vigil in their capital's central Plaza de Mayo before Tuesday's papal installation ceremony erupted in joy when Pope Francis called at 3:30 a.m. local time urging them to cast... Read more »

Pope Francis' diplomatic skills were put to the test Monday as his political nemesis, Argentine President Cristina Fernandez, asked him to intervene in the dispute with Britain over the Falkland... Read more »

The Samaritans, a rapidly dwindling sect dating to biblical times, have opened their insular community to brides imported from eastern Europe in a desperate quest to preserve their ancient culture. Read more »

Breaking with tradition, Pope Francis delivered off-the-cuff remarks about God's power to forgive instead of reading from a written speech for the first Sunday window appearance of his papacy. Read more »

Pope Francis offered intimate insights Saturday into the moments after his election, telling journalists that he was immediately inspired to take the name of St. Francis of Assisi because of his... Read more »

In one of his last major public appearances before his death, Pope Paul VI sat on a throne atop a platform carried on the shoulders of 12 men as he was brought into the funeral of assassinated... Read more »

For more than a billion Roman Catholics worldwide, he's Pope Francis. For Argentina's poorest citizens, crowded in "misery villages" throughout the capital, he's proudly known as one of their own,... Read more »

Like his predecessor, Pope Francis reached out to Rome's Jewish community at the very start of his pontificate, pledging to continue to strengthen the increasingly close ties between Catholics and... Read more »

The Vatican lashed out Friday at what it called a "defamatory" and "anti-clerical left-wing" campaign to discredit Pope Francis over his actions during Argentina's 1976-1983 military junta, saying... Read more »