Around 15 students shouted 'at top volume' to disrupt an event on Ireland's abortion referendum

All Saints and All Souls days are a solemn time for remembering the dead and spending time with family

Catalan nationalism is the latest fashionable cause. But its history is one of bloodshed, greed and anti-clericalism

By 2050, the leading Catholic nations will be in Africa, Asia and Latin America. This will change everything

Philip Pullman used to be more of a cause than an author. But he has lost his way

Last Saturday Pope Francis completed a trilogy of speeches on Europe in which he appeared, in turn, as a prophet, dreamer and contemplative. Taken together, they are comparable to Benedict XVI’s own great trio of addresses on European democracy, at the Collège des Bernardins in 2008, Westminster Hall in 2010 and the Bundestag in 2011.

✣ US breaks with UN on anti-Christian persecution What happened? The White House has overhauled its strategy for helping persecuted Christians, promising to give money to organisations which work directly with Christians and other vulnerable minorities in the Middle East. Until now, the US State Department has given money to the UN, but vice president Mike

✣ Highlights from the week online Luther’s theology was rooted in his anguish The traditionalist blog Rorate Caeli republished an account by Bishop William Adrian of Nashville – originally published in the Wanderer 50 years ago – of the life of Martin Luther. Bishop Adrian argued that the heart of Luther’s thought was the denial

The Archbishop of Canterbury has described how he and Cardinal Vincent Nichols wept together over the divisions of Christianity at a Mass in Westminster Cathedral. Archbishop Justin Welby recalled the moment in an article for the Evening Standard marking the 500th anniversary of the Reformation. He said that he joined the line for Communion and,

The High Court has ruled in favour of a university which expelled a student for his views on gay marriage. Felix Ngole, a religious education teacher from Barnsley, was studying for an MA in social work at the University of Sheffield – until 2015, when he commented on Facebook that “the Bible and God identify

Bishop Philip Egan has urged Catholics to pray for the conversion of Jeremy Corbyn and other MPs after they signed a letter demanding a ban on prayer vigils outside abortion clinics. A total of 113 MPs signed the letter to Home Secretary Amber Rudd, which was published on the 50th anniversary of the Abortion Act.

The first official English-language translation of the ritual book Exorcisms and Related Supplications is now available from the US Conference of Catholic Bishops. Distribution of the text is limited to bishops. Exorcists, other clergy and scholars can only obtain a copy with a bishop’s permission. However, a separate booklet, Prayers Against the Powers of Darkness,