Recognizing “the gifts of each baptized person” — women and men — Pope Francis ordered a change to canon law and liturgical norms so that women could be formally installed as lectors and acolytes.

Pope Francis said he was “astonished” by the violent breach of the U.S. Capitol, especially because the people of the United States are “so disciplined in democracy.”

Tommy Lasorda, who won two World Series titles during his 21-year managerial reign with the Los Angeles Dodgers and became an ambassador for baseball in retirement from the sport, died Jan. 7 in Los Angeles at age 93.

There is no example in American history of a U.S. president inciting violence against American institutions or fellow citizens in the manner that President Donald Trump seemingly did on Jan. 6 when an angry mob stormed the U.S. Capitol, according to a historian at The Catholic University of America.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi referenced the Epiphany, St. Francis of Assisi, and also uttered a prayer as the House of Representatives reconvened the night of Jan. 6 to confirm the Electoral College win of President-elect Joseph R. Biden Jr. in the November presidential election.

The breach of the U.S. Capitol Jan. 6 sent shock waves around the world.

Supporters of outgoing President Donald Trump breached the U.S. Capitol Jan. 6, putting the building on lockdown and interrupting the count of electoral votes to certify the 2020 election, capping the last days of a tumultuous presidency with chaos.

Father Michael Pfleger, a popular Chicago priest and outspoken advocate against gun violence, gangs, poverty and racism, has stepped aside from his ministry after the Chicago Archdiocese said it received an allegation that the priest had sexually abused a minor more than 40 years ago.

People inside and outside the church are calling on authorities to get to the bottom of mystery funds transferred from the Vatican to Australia.

Catholics across the country are instead being are encouraged to take part in a nationwide prayer vigil from Jan. 28 through Jan. 29, marking the 48th anniversary of the U.S. Supreme Court’s 1973 Roe v. Wade and Doe v. Bolton decisions legalizing abortion.