CNS

VATICAN, April 21, 2010-- Recalling a recent meeting with victims of sex abuse by clergy, Pope Benedict XVI reiterated his promise that the church was doing everything it could to end abuse.

VATICAN, Feb. 11, 2010-- The fact that human beings must endure illness, grow old and experience pain in body and spirit is a mystery that all the major religious seek to understand, said speakers at a Vatican conference.

Representatives of various faiths who gathered at the Vatican Feb. 9 to discuss the nature of illness and the care of the sick also agreed that faith and spirituality help people find meaning in human suffering and that faith offers a comfort that physical or medical solutions cannot provide.

VATICAN CITY, December 28, 2009--Dominican Father Edward Schillebeeckx, a theologian whose work had a huge impact on the Dutch church, died at the age of 95 Dec. 23 in Nijmegen, Netherlands, where he lived since 1957.

The Dominican taught in the department of dogmatic and historical theology at the Catholic University of Nijmegen, now known as Radboud University Nijmegen, from 1957 until his retirement in 1983. He served as theological adviser to the Dutch bishops during the Second Vatican Council and was seen as the main inspiration behind the Dutch catechism for adults.

VATICAN, August 3, 2009-- Pope Benedict XVI deplored the killing of eight Christians in Pakistan by a Muslim mob and urged the minority Christian community not to be deterred by the attack.

The Christians, including four women and a child, were either shot or burned alive Aug. 1 when a crowd attacked the eastern Pakistani town of Gojra, setting fire to dozens of Christian homes. Authorities said tensions were running high in the area, fueled by a false rumor that a Quran, the sacred book of Islam, had been desecrated.

ROME, May 7, 2009-- The newly premiered movie "Angels and Demons" is little more than "harmless entertainment," with many factual errors and little cultural value, according to the Vatican newspaper.

Two dispassionate articles in L'Osservatore Romano May 7 may disappoint the film's promoters, who had sought a conflict with the Vatican of the type that surrounded "The Da Vinci Code" in 2006. Both films are based on books by author Dan Brown.