Dogs who stole bones, gerbils who pushed each other off the flywheel, and perhaps even cats feeling guilty about their disdainful attitudes were blessed at Masses all over the world last weekend in commemoration of the feast day of St. Francis of Assisi, the patron saint of animals – even naughty ones.
– Christina Reinwald
A priest distributes Communion to soldiers during World War II in Russia. In a joint ecumenical service May 8, 2020, marking the 75th anniversary of the end of World War II, Christian churches in Germany issued a call for a commitment to work for peace. (Credit: CNS photo/KNA.)
Henry David Thoreau. (Credit: Stock image.)
An Orthodox icon of the Blessed Virgin Mary with the child Jesus. (Credit: Stock image.)
Three Catholic priests and a Lutheran pastor from the northern German city of Lubeck were executed by the Nazis Nov. 10, 1943. The three Catholic martyrs, pictured clockwise from bottom left, are Blesseds Eduard Mueller, Johannes Prassek and Hermann Lange. The Rev. Karl Friedrich Stellbrink is pictured at bottom, right. (Credit: CNS photo.)