Arkansas Catholic shares global, local headline news

Learn about inspiring people, parish events and the Universal Church

Published: February 24, 2016

Here are some of the stories you missed if you didn't read Arkansas Catholic's Feb. 20 issue. Some of the stories and columns in Arkansas Catholic appear only in the print and complete digital editions. To read what you're missing, subscribe today.

Pope makes long-awaited visit to Our Lady of Guadalupe

MEXICO CITY -- Pope Francis fulfilled his much-desired wish to pray in silence before the miraculous image of Our Lady of Guadalupe.

Beginning of Lent

Pastor Father Jack Sidler visits the pre-kindergarten students at St. John School in Russellville to distribute ashes on Ash Wednesday Feb. 10. (Photo)

HELP is on the way for those who need a handyman in Conway

CONWAY -- Solly Braddy admits she’s “not too old, but old enough,” to make yard work on her half acre of hillside a difficult task for this 79-year-old parishioner at St. Joseph Church in Conway.

Obituaries

Leo Laverne Heckel, 95, a member of St. Bernard Church in Bella Vista, died Jan. 15. He is survived by ...

Pope: Speak out against drug cartels

MEXICO CITY -- Pope Francis demanded forceful denunciations of drug violence in Mexico from the country’s bishops, who have preferred timid pronouncements instead of speaking prophetically on a tragedy that has claimed more than 100,000 lives over the past 10 years and left another 25,000 Mexicans missing.

Human trafficking slowly moving out of the shadows

WASHINGTON -- Even though slavery has been off the books in the United States for more than 150 years, the practice still exists in this country -- and elsewhere.

Three ways to enrich your prayers, giving, study and fasting during Lent

WASHINGTON (CNS) -- What do a new social media campaign, a new fundraiser and new features for a popular app have in common?

Pope pushes ‘door of mercy’ wider, sends missionaries out

VATICAN CITY -- After opening holy doors in Rome to begin the Year of Mercy, Pope Francis has now pushed those passageways even wider by sending forth hundreds of “missionaries of mercy” to every corner of the earth.

Surge in Zika virus rekindles abortion debate in Brazil

SAO PAULO -- The president of the Brazilian bishops’ conference criticized a proposal by the U.N. Human Rights Commission that countries allow abortion in cases in which the mother was infected with the Zika virus.

‘Risen’ shows resurrection from a skeptic’s point of view

ROME -- Hollywood is no stranger to movies depicting the life and death of Christ, trying to present Jesus from the perspective of the Gospels, which are the written accounts of Jesus’ life and ministry from those closest to him.

Vatican II opened a better connection for Catholics to sacred Scripture

During this Lenten season the Church, through the Liturgy of the Word, unites itself with the mystery of Jesus in the desert. (CCC 540) On the second Sunday of Lent each year, we move from Jesus’ retreat to the desert and temptation to the glory shown in his Transfiguration. (Understanding our Church, Seeds of Faith)

Where would you go during the Year of Mercy?

“I would go to Mexico to help the poor and the children that are homeless and orphans. I’d want to help the families that want to move to America to pursue their dreams. In Mexico, I would help ...” (Youthspeak, Seeds of Faith)