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VATICAN CITY (RNS) Church leaders welcome the reforms and fresh air that Pope Francis is bringing to an often dysfunctional institution. But at 77, they just want him to have the stamina to keep it up.

(RNS) While religious liberty remains a "core value" in Arizona, Gov. Jan Brewer said Wednesday, "so is non-discrimination." And therein lies the balancing act that's at the root of several other disputes.

(RNS) The national ecumenical program encourages young adults, aged 18 to 35, to connect social and environmental justice activities with Franciscan teachings that stress the interconnectedness of creation.

NEW YORK (RNS) The practice of reclaiming and eating food that has been discarded is populated mostly by nonreligious people. But for Gio Andollo, Dumpster diving is an act of faith, one that is motivated by a biblical mandate to care for the Earth.

(RNS) In 1917, a missionary couple were told they couldn't receive support to travel to Liberia with the fledgling Assemblies of God because they were “colored.”

VATICAN CITY (RNS) Anticipation is mounting for a series of closed-door discussions on Thursday and Friday, when the cardinals will hold what are expected to be frank talks about issues such as contraception, cohabitation, gay marriage and whether divorced and remarried Catholics can receive Communion.

(RNS) Coots, whose father is also a serpent-handling preacher, was a legendary figure among a small group of Pentecostal believers who practiced the so-called “signs of the gospel” found in Mark 16; among them taking up serpents.