Three Egyptian Coptic monks of the Coptic Orthodox Archdiocese of South Africa were murdered March 12 in their monastery in Cullinan, a small town in Gauteng province, about 18 miles east of the capital, Pretoria.

A federal judge March 8 dismissed a challenge from Republican-led states, allowing the Biden administration to continue operating a program permitting some migrants from four countries to enter the U.S. on humanitarian grounds.

The Catholic Church should hold a Synod of Bishops devoted exclusively to defining just war, just defense and just peace, said the president of the Institute of Religion and Society at the Ukrainian Catholic University in Lviv.

Catholic clergy from Egypt have warned that ties with Orthodox and Islamic leaders are being derailed by a Vatican decision to allow the blessing of same-sex couples, after the country’s influential Coptic Orthodox Church suspended dialogue over the issue.

The saints are not unreachable “exceptions of humanity” but ordinary people who worked diligently to grow in virtue, Pope Francis said.