Women religious from Africa and a representative of Catholic Relief Services, the overseas charitable arm of the Catholic Church in the U.S., grappled with the Trump administration’s cuts to foreign aid during a March 13 panel hosted by the Initiative on Catholic Social Thought and Public Life at Georgetown University.

The MCC, which represents bishops serving the three Catholic dioceses in the state (Baltimore, Washington and Wilmington, Del.), is concerned about legislation that runs contrary to Catholic teaching on abortion and healthcare ethics. 

Four weeks after Pope Francis was hospitalized and one day after the 12th anniversary of the pope’s election, Cardinal Pietro Parolin, Vatican secretary of state, celebrated a Mass for the pope with ambassadors accredited to the Holy See.

Hundreds of civilians have been killed since March 6 as Syria’s security forces battled armed supporters of former Syria president Bashar Assad.

A Republican lawmaker urged the Trump administration on March 12 to designate Nigeria as a “country of particular concern” in response to violence in that country perpetuated against predominantly Christian communities.