These are hard times marked by longings for civil discourse among opponents, the smooth transfer of power, and the ability to acknowledge the shortcomings of our ancestors without rewriting or erasing history in self-loathing and accusation, according to Condoleeza Rice.

Louis “Lou” Baldwin, a Catholic journalist and a gentleman known by generations of Philadelphia Catholics for his bylines for 35 years, died Oct. 18 in Philadelphia. He was 86.

Denver Archbishop Samuel J. Aquila Oct. 20 condemned a rash of anti-religious vandalism of churches and other buildings in northern Colorado, and prayed “for an end to these attacks and that God’s love will be known by anyone who feels compelled to commit these acts.”

As Haitians seek to rebuild their country, “it is imperative that the international community take a shared and concrete interest in their plight,” the Vatican’s U.N. nuncio said during an informal meeting of the Security Council on Haiti’s dire situation.

As Christian missionaries and family members, some as young as 8 months old, were still being held for ransom in Haiti by a gang notorious for group kidnappings, other charities and religious groups examined how they can remain safe while delivering humanitarian aid.

Retired Pope Benedict XVI has hinted at his death in a condolence message for a former colleague who was a professor in Regensburg, Germany.

Powell, who was the nation’s first Black secretary of state, as well as chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and national security adviser, died early Oct. 18 of complications from COVID-19 at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center in Bethesda, Maryland, just outside of Washington, where he was being treated for multiple myeloma, a type of blood cancer. He was 84.

Cardinal Mario Grech, secretary-general of the Synod of Bishops, said in the process to create a more “synodal church,” one where every member contributes and all listen to each other, “we are touching something divine, and prayer is essential.”

Pope Francis said he knows “it often annoys people” when he promotes Catholic teaching on social issues like poverty, migration and ecology, but he is going to keep doing so because the Gospel demands it.

The Blessed Michael McGivney Pilgrimage Center in New Haven has opened an online exhibition centering on the Knights of Columbus connection with baseball, which spans almost a century and a half.