The suspension of public Masses, the closing of schools and the limiting of public gatherings has helped slow the spread of COVID-19, but it also has resulted in financial and business challenges for churches and schools in the Diocese of Phoenix.

It is both appropriate and responsible for the Catholic Church to add its voice to those calling for a thorough and comprehensive understanding of the underlying causes and the effects of this virus on these communities, which continue to suffer from longstanding inequities in basic human rights such as access to quality healthcare,” Archbishop Lori said.

Priests and doctors who gave their lives caring for the spiritual and physical well-being of others during the coronavirus pandemic are like Jesus, the good shepherd, who laid down his life for his flock, Pope Francis said.

The percentage of sermons about abortion is in the single digits, according to a Pew Research Center study, the results of which were released April 29.

There is “no absolute duty” to boycott any COVID-19 vaccine produced with the help of cells derived from aborted fetuses, said a researcher from a Catholic bioethics institute.

The sainthood cause for Dorothy Day, co-founder of the Catholic Worker movement, believes it could have all of the documentation prepared at some point next year to send to the Vatican Congregation for Saints’ Causes.

President Donald Trump said he would continue to support issues vital to the Catholic Church, especially abortion, religious freedom and school choice, in a conference call with Catholic leaders and educators.

The Vatican published a free downloadable book of Pope Francis’ prayers and homilies responding to the trial and suffering of the coronavirus pandemic.

Pope Francis approved the establishment of the John Paul I Vatican Foundation to preserve and promote the writings, thinking, example and study of “the smiling pope.”

Ray Repp, the liturgical musician who spearheaded the concept of the folk group-led “guitar Mass” with his “Mass for Young Americans,” died April 26 in Palm Springs, California, of complications from cancer. He was 77.