America at 250: Celebrating both a birthday and a history of religious liberty March 21, 2026By Kimberly Heatherington OSV News Filed Under: America's 250th anniversary, Feature, News, Religious Freedom, World News As the United States indulges in a star-spangled celebration of its 250th birthday, a cornerstone of historical significance that stands out is religious freedom, and unlike for many other nations, it is a unique founding principle of this nation.
House speaker defends role of religion in public life at National Catholic Prayer Breakfast March 20, 2026By Kate Scanlon OSV News Filed Under: Feature, News, Religious Freedom, U.S. Congress, World News House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., defended the role of religion in public life during comments March 19 at the National Catholic Prayer Breakfast in Washington.
Archbishop, witnesses testify to religious freedom risks health care providers face March 17, 2026By Kate Scanlon OSV News Filed Under: Health Care, News, Religious Freedom, World News Conscience protections for faith-based health providers remain a key religious freedom concern, witnesses at a March 16 meeting of the Department of Justice’s Religious Liberty Commission said.
Pope Leo to receive Liberty Medal for promoting religious liberty, human dignity March 16, 2026By Gina Christian OSV News Filed Under: America's 250th anniversary, News, Religious Freedom, World News As the U.S. marks its 250th anniversary, Pope Leo XIV will be honored in the nation’s former capital of Philadelphia for his efforts to promote religious liberty as well as freedom of expression and conscience.
Christians ‘most persecuted religious community in the world,’ Vatican tells UN March 9, 2026By Junno Arocho Esteves OSV News Filed Under: Feature, News, Religious Freedom, World News The Vatican’s permanent observer to the United Nations in Geneva called on governments and international organizations to strengthen religious freedom protections for persecuted Christians.
Experts: Debates about Zionism, even by Catholics, often at odds with Catholic understanding March 7, 2026By Gina Christian OSV News Filed Under: Ecumenism and Interfaith Relations, News, Religious Freedom, World News Experts in Jewish-Catholic relations told OSV News that some current public debates about Zionism, including among Catholics, are at odds with the Catholic understanding of the term — which itself has an array of meanings, as does the word “Israel” itself.
Sudanese bishops express distress at the massacre of 178 people in northern South Sudan March 5, 2026By Fredrick Nzwili OSV News Filed Under: News, Religious Freedom, World News Catholic bishops in Sudan and South Sudan have expressed distress at the brutal killing of nearly 178 people in northern South Sudan on March 2.
Iran’s exiled Christians watch events unfolding across Middle East with hope, fear March 5, 2026By Jonathan Luxmoore OSV News Filed Under: Conflict in the Middle East, News, Religious Freedom, World News As conflict flares across the Middle East following U.S. and Israeli attacks on Iran, the country’s exiled Christians remain deeply anxious about the future.
Religious freedom watchdog annual report spotlights ‘terrifying crisis of religious violence’ in Nigeria March 5, 2026By Kate Scanlon OSV News Filed Under: News, Religious Freedom, World News Nigeria is facing “a terrifying crisis of religious violence,” the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom said in its 2026 annual report, released March 4.
From Algeria to Angola, Africans hope message of peace, dialogue will resonate during papal trip March 3, 2026By Ngala Killian Chimton OSV News Filed Under: News, Religious Freedom, Vatican, World News From Algeria to Angola, Church leaders across Africa expressed profound joy and hopes that the upcoming apostolic trip would bring much needed change to regions needing reconciliation and social stability, and dialogue to those who live interreligious relations daily.
Spanish bishops clarify Pope Leo XIV’s remarks following media reports February 25, 2026By Junno Arocho Esteves OSV News Filed Under: News, Religious Freedom, Vatican, World News The executive commission of the Spanish bishops’ conference clarified a recent report that alleged Pope Leo XIV had warned about attempts by far-right political parties in the country to “weaponize the Church.”
Trump touts immigration enforcement in State of the Union address as polls show growing concern February 25, 2026By Kate Scanlon OSV News Filed Under: Feature, Immigration and Migration, News, Religious Freedom, World News President Donald Trump touted his administration’s immigration enforcement actions in his Feb. 24 State of the Union address, as polls show increasing concern about these policies among U.S. voters.
