4+ week, 13+ hour ago (178+ words) People around the world are celebrating the Day of the Dead, blending pre-Columbian rituals with the Roman Catholic observance of All Saint's Day on Nov. 1 and All Soul's Day on Nov. 2. The holiday" November 1, 2025, 4:51 PM People around the world are celebrating the Day of the Dead, blending pre-Columbian rituals with the Roman Catholic observance of All Saint's Day on Nov. 1 and All Soul's Day on Nov. 2. The holiday, known in Spanish as " Dia de los Muertos," is especially popular in Mexico, but is also observed in other countries, including the U.S. and Germany. November 1, 2025, 4:51 PM People around the world are celebrating the Day of the Dead, blending pre-Columbian rituals with the Roman Catholic observance of All Saint's Day on Nov. 1 and All Soul's Day on Nov. 2. The holiday, known in Spanish as " Dia de los Muertos," is especially popular in Mexico,…...

3+ week, 2+ day ago (339+ words) November 7, 2025, 1:35 AM Causs, 62, joins an all-male governing body called the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, which sits just under the church's president and his two top counselors. Apostles help set church policy while overseeing the faith's many business interests. With his appointment, he joins the order of succession to the church presidency, which is decided by seniority in the Quorum of the Twelve. A native of France, Causs spent the past decade as a presiding bishop who managed the church's money and welfare programs. Under his leadership, the church increased its humanitarian spending and dotted the globe with lavish temples where the faith's most sacred ceremonies take place. The faith known widely as the Mormon church does not disclose or discuss its finances, but the latest filings from its investment arm, Ensign Peak Advisors Inc., valued its portfolio at $58 billion....

3+ week, 3+ day ago (222+ words) November 5, 2025, 2:01 PM A Catholic leader in the D.C. area will undergo surgery next week to remove a cancerous growth. Cardinal Robert McElroy, the eighth Archbishop of Washington, has been diagnosed with liposarcoma, and he will have the cancer surgically removed on Nov. 13, the Archdiocese of Washington said in an update on its website Wednesday. The statement said that the McElroy's prognosis is good, as the cancer is nonaggressive and tends not to metastasize. "I am at peace with this challenge and hope and believe that in God's grace I will be Archbishop of Washington for many years to come," the 71-year old said in a statement. "I ask your prayers and support in these days and plan to resume full duties two weeks after the surgery." In 2010, McElroy was appointed as an auxiliary bishop in San Francisco by Pope Benedict XVI,…...

4+ day, 17+ hour ago (123+ words) November 25, 2025, 3:27 PM Leo said he was thankful for many things and urged everyone to recognize the gifts they have been given. "First and foremost, the gift of life. The gift of the faith. The gift of unity," he said. He was responding to reporters" questions Tuesday night as he left Castel Gandolfo, where he goes on Mondays and Tuesdays for a rest and to play tennis. He described Thanksgiving as "this beautiful feast that we have in the United States, which unites all people " people of different faiths, people who perhaps do not have the gift of faith" to say thank you to someone. Leo will spend his first Thanksgiving as pope in Turkey on his first foreign trip....

2+ day, 19+ hour ago (117+ words) With his foreign trip to Turkey and Lebanon, Pope Leo XIV will become the first American pope on the road. The journey fulfills a visit Pope Francis had hoped to make before his health declined" With his foreign trip to Turkey and Lebanon, Pope Leo XIV will become the first American pope on the road. The journey fulfills a visit Pope Francis had hoped to make before his health declined, and it gives Leo a prominent platform to speak about peace in the Middle East. In a notable shift from the Vatican's traditional use of Italian, he will address audiences exclusively in English while in Turkey and in both English and French during his time in Lebanon....

3+ day, 4+ hour ago (30+ words) ANKARA (AP) " Pope Leo XIV arrives in Turkey on his first foreign trip. Pope Leo XIV arrives in Turkey on his first foreign trip November 27, 2025, 4:32 AM...

1+ week, 5+ day ago (345+ words) WORKING CAPITAL: DC's ambassadors focus on keeping their 'home' city clean November 17, 2025, 12:53 PM The top leader of the Anglican Church in North America has been suspended from ministry after facing allegations of sexual and other misconduct. Wood's suspension, approved by other senior bishops, doesn't imply guilt or innocence of any charges against Wood, said Bishop Julian Dobbs, the ACNA's new dean. Dobbs did not provide any update on proceedings against Wood but said in a statement that a minister can be suspended when "it is determined to be in the best interests of the Church." Wood was accused last month in a presentment, or a list of charges compiled by church members. The presentment has not yet been made public, but an investigative report by The Washington Post said the complaint alleged sexual misconduct by Wood before he became archbishop…...

3+ day, 8+ hour ago (915+ words) November 27, 2025, 12:12 AM Pope Leo XIV's first foreign trip, to Turkey and Lebanon, will be packed with opportunities to advance relations with two of the Catholic Church's top priorities: Orthodox Christians and Muslims. It will also give history's first American pope the spotlight to speak in broader terms about peace in the Middle East in languages much of the world can understand: He'll speak exclusively in English while in Turkey, and a combination of English and French in Lebanon, in a departure from the Vatican's traditional lingua franca of Italian. Security will be tight, especially after Israel fired a strike in Beirut to target Hezbollah, just days before Leo arrives. Here's a look at some of the expected highlights of the Nov. 27-Dec. 2 visit to two countries that the late Pope Francis had intended to visit but couldn't as his health…...

2+ week, 4+ day ago (480+ words) WEATHER ALERT: Cold and windy Veterans Day in store for the DC region November 11, 2025, 10:35 AM A Christian missionary father and his daughter were killed when a small plane bound for a hurricane relief mission in Jamaica crashed in a South Florida neighborhood. Christian ministry organization Ignite the Fire identified the two victims of the Monday morning crash as the group's founder, Alexander Wurm, 53, and his daughter Serena Wurm, 22. The pair were bringing humanitarian aid to Jamaica, according to the organization, when the Beechcraft King Air plane they were flying in crashed into a pond in a residential area of the Fort Lauderdale suburb of Coral Springs, narrowly missing homes. As of Tuesday morning, investigators had not reported any other victims. Ignite the Fire is "dedicated to empowering youth through missions and evangelism across the Caribbean," according to the organization's website....

5+ day, 16+ hour ago (932+ words) November 24, 2025, 4:08 PM (RNS) " Many Americans may have lost faith in organized religion, but according to recent data, they still love the Good Book. As of September, Bible sales were up 11% this year over 2024, part of a continuing boom in Bible sales. That includes 2.4 million sold in September 2025 as part of a surge that coincided with the death of conservative Christian activist Charlie Kirk, according to data from Circana, a company that tracks book sales. All told, more than 18 million Bibles have been sold so far this year. "Sales for Bibles have been steadily growing in the U.S. since 2021 and have set unprecedented annual sales records since 2022," Brenna Connor, an industry analyst at Circana BookScan, told RNS in an email. "2024 marked a 20-year high for Bible sales in the U.S., and 2025 is on track to surpass these levels, underscoring the growing interest in…...