NATION/WORLD

Phoenix Bishop Thomas J. Olmsted has asked that parishes, schools and individuals join Pope Francis in his call to unite in prayer and action against global hunger.

When fast-food workers across the country walked off their jobs demanding higher wages Dec. 5, their actions should have caught the attention of the nation's Catholics, say those who stress that the call for a living wage echoes long-standing Catholic social teaching.

Nelson Mandela, who led the struggle to replace South Africa's apartheid regime with a multiracial democracy, died Dec. 5 at his home in Johannesburg.

Pope Francis accepted a proposal to set up a special commission on the sexual abuse of children, which will advise him on ways to prevent abuse and provide pastoral care for victims and their families.

Lawyers for a woman who claims she suffered a miscarriage because of the way a Michigan Catholic hospital handled her case have filed suit on her behalf against the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops over its "Ethical and Religious Directives for Catholic Health Care."

Pope Francis' apostolic exhortation "Evangelii Gaudium" ("The Joy of the Gospel") has prompted plenty of commentary, and not exclusively from Catholic circles.

Pope Francis and the eight members of his international Council of Cardinals have begun their discussions on specific ways to reorganize the Roman Curia, looking first at the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Sacraments, the Vatican spokesman said.

Pope Francis will help launch a global campaign of prayer and action against world hunger.

In addition to having worked sweeping floors and running tests in a chemical laboratory as a teenager, Pope Francis revealed he also used to work as a bouncer.

The best present in life is encountering Jesus -- an encounter that will last a lifetime, Pope Francis said.