Pope Francis will not preside over the traditional end-of-the-year prayer service nor the New Year’s Mass in St. Peter’s Basilica due to “painful sciatica,” the Vatican said.

Even with the many challenges of a difficult year, the Catholic Review accomplished great things in 2020.

History may show that religious liberties under the Donald Trump administration enjoyed an elevated level of support not seen perhaps since the administration of President George W. Bush.

The execution date of Lisa Montgomery, the only woman on federal death row, is currently undecided. In late December a federal judge said the Justice Department unlawfully rescheduled her execution while there had already been a stay in effect, granted because one of her attorneys tested positive for the coronavirus.

Alfred Rozanski, a dedicated parishioner of Sacred Heart of Mary Church in Graceland Park whose son rose to become the archbishop of St. Louis, died Dec. 27 of complications from COVID-19. He was 86.