Communication is not the essential ingredient for a successful marriage; commitment is.

During Poverty Awareness Month, OSV News talked with Catholic Charities offices across the country — in Virginia, Mississippi and Nevada — to learn how they help feed a hungry nation.

After candlelight filled a darkened St. Peter’s Basilica, Pope Francis asked consecrated men and women not to let their spirits “doze off” while waiting to encounter the Lord but to keep their hearts awake in anticipation “like an eternal flame.”

Since the Dicastery of the Doctrine of the Faith issued “Fiducia Supplicans” (“Supplicating Trust”) on “the pastoral meaning of blessings” Dec. 18, which proposed “to broaden and enrich the meaning of blessings,” including the extension of non-liturgical blessings to individuals in “irregular” extramarital sexual relationships — especially same-sex couples and cohabiting heterosexual couples — bishops around the world have distilled its pastoral guidance for their specific flocks.

As Catholics and Anglicans pray and work for the day when they can celebrate the Eucharist together, they are called to support one another in situations of suffering, apologize together for times when they have sinned and work together to share the good news of God’s love, said bishops from both communities.