Amid severe cuts in U.S. foreign aid, Catholic bishops an ocean apart are advocating for deeper bonds between the U.S. and the peoples of the African continent — with God-given human dignity as central to that summons.

When Principal Cyril Cruz arrived at Holy Innocents School in Long Beach early on the morning of Feb. 2, she discovered a scene of “desecration”: trash, food, several Virgin Mary statues broken and Catholic missal books spilled onto the floor. The tabernacle was significantly damaged.

At a Feb. 1 Mass honoring the Basilica of St. Mary’s centennial, local Church leaders spoke about its architectural and liturgical beauty, but even more so about the church’s “living stones” who weren’t present in 1926: its parishioners.

A Haitian Catholic chaplain serving in the U.S. said he and fellow Haitian Catholics are welcoming a last-minute reprieve from threats of deportation — but its members are still weighing options as the Trump administration cracks down on immigration, while Haiti continues to spiral into chaos.

During his recent visit to Denmark, Cardinal Pietro Parolin declined an invitation to sign a joint declaration regarding Greenland’s sovereignty, in the hopes of maintaining neutrality and fostering dialogue, said Danish Bishop Czeslaw Kozon of Copenhagen.

Pope Leo XIV said Scripture is meant to speak directly to believers in today’s world, emphasizing that the Bible is the word of God expressed through human authors during his weekly general audience.

Two U.S. bishops Feb. 3 urged Catholics to be “faithful stewards of memory” and “courageous witnesses to truth” during Black History Month, observed in February.

President Donald Trump signed into law a funding package to end the partial government shutdown Feb. 3, hours after its passage in the House, which included an agreement for funding for the Department of Homeland Security to be renegotiated to include new, stronger constraints on federal immigration officers.

The cause of international religious freedom is tied to global stability and is increasingly threatened by authoritarian regimes, said speakers and participants in the sixth annual International Religious Freedom Summit in Washington Feb. 2 and 3.

As global tensions soar, the head of the nation’s Catholic bishops has denounced the lapse of a key nuclear arms agreement, while urging policymakers to hold to its terms.