Martyr whose Apologia, or defense of the faith, is considered one of the most priceless documents of the early Church. Apollonius was a Roman senator who was denounced as a Christian by one of his slaves. The Praetorian Prefect, Sextus Tigidius Perennis, arrested him, also putting the slave to death as an informer. Perennis demanded that Apollonius denounce the faith, and when he refused, the case was remanded to the Roman senate. There a debate took place between Perennis and Apollonius that ...

Anicetus was a Syrian from Emesa. He became pope about 155 and actively opposed Marcionism and Gnosticism. His pontificate saw the appearance of the controversy between East and West over the date of Easter. St. Polycarp, a disciple of John, is reported to have visited him in Rome about the dispute, which was to accelerate and grow more heated over the following centuries.

St. Bernadette was born in Lourdes, France on January 7, 1844. Her parents were very poor and she was the first of nine children. She was baptized at St. Pierre's, the local parish church, on January 9. As a toddler, Bernadette contracted cholera and suffered extreme asthma. Unfortunately, she lived the rest of her life in poor health. On Thursday, February 11, 1858, fourteen-year-old Bernadette was sent with her younger sister and a friend to gather firewood, when a very beautiful lady ...

St. Paternus.The first 5th century saint. He followed his father's path by becoming a hermit in Wales. He founded the monastery at the great church of Paternus, and became a bishop of that region. He was known for his preaching, charity and mortifications. Scholars believe his story is an amalgam. His feast day is April 16.

St. Lydwine is the patroness of sickness Lydwine of Schiedam was born at Schiedam, Holland, one of nine children of a working man. After an injury in her youth, she became bedridden and suffered the rest of her life from various illnesses and diseases. She experienced mystical gifts, including supernatural visions of heaven, hell, purgatory, apparitions of Christ, and the stigmata. Thomas a Kempis wrote a biography of her. She was canonized Pope Leo XIII in 1890. Lydwine suffered a fall while ...

Martin I lay too sick to fight on a couch in front of the altar when the soldiers burst into the Lateran basilica. He had come to the church when he heard the soldiers had landed. But the thought of kidnapping a sick pope from the house of God didn't stop the soldiers from grabbing him and hustling him down to their ship. Elected pope in 649, Martin I had gotten in trouble for refusing to condone silence in the face of wrong. At that time there existed a popular heresy that held that Christ ...

Pope Leo XIV greets the faithful in St. Peter's Square shortly after his election to the papacy, Thursday, May 8, 2025. / Credit: Daniel Ibáñez/CNA

Lima Newsroom, May 9, 2025 / 14:49 pm (CNA).

The deputy secretary of the Peruvian Bishops’ Conference said he is “sure that the heart of Pope Leo XIV ... will greatly help the world grow and improve.”

Thousands participate in the March for Life on May 3, 2025, in Mexico City. / Credit: Courtesy of Steps for Life

Puebla, Mexico, May 6, 2025 / 17:11 pm (CNA).

Thousands of people participated in the March for Life on May 3 in Mexico City to mark 18 years since abortion was decriminalized in Mexico’s capital.

Left photo: Pivato and Pope Francis in March 2024. | Right photo: Francis and Pivato in December 2013, at the start of his pontificate. / Credit: Photos courtesy of Marcelo Pivato

Lima Newsroom, May 3, 2025 / 08:00 am (CNA).

Following Pope Francis’ passing, one of his closest Argentine friends remembered him with gratitude, emphasizing that his legacy is impossible to minimize.

Sister Inah Canabarro Lucas lived to 116. / Credit: Nathália Queiroz/ACI Digital

Sao Paulo, Brazil, May 1, 2025 / 16:00 pm (CNA).

Sister Inah Canabarro Lucas, the oldest person in the world, died Wednesday in Porto Alegre, Brazil, at the age of 116.

Pope Francis during a general audience. / Credit: Daniel Ibáñez/EWTN News

Buenos Aires, Argentina, Apr 30, 2025 / 07:00 am (CNA).

The face of Brother Juan of the Community of the Lamb went viral last week in a video recalling an emotion-laden moment with Pope Francis in Rome.

Canada’s prime minister and Liberal Party leader Mark Carney applauds at a victory party in Ottawa, Ontario, on April 29, 2025. Prime Minister Mark Carney won Canada’s election on April 28, 2025, leading his Liberal Party to a new term in power. / Credit: DAVE CHAN/AFP via Getty Images

Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Apr 29, 2025 / 11:57 am (CNA).

Canadians voted Monday to elect Liberal Party leader Mark Carney to a full term as prime minister following a tight race against his conservative challenger, Pierre Poilievre.