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Three years ago, the Catholic Health Association, whose members run hospitals and nursing homes across the country, backed passage of the federal health law. The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, which represents the hierarchy of the church, opposed it. The groups remain divided over the law's requirement for most employer-based health insurance plans to provide women with contraceptives.
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Pope Francis has cleared the way for Pope John Paul II to be canonized after approving a second miracle attributed to his intercession. And Francis also approved Pope John XXIII for sainthood, even though he his not credited with a second miracle. In approving the canonization of both, the new Pope has pleased both conservatives and reformers in the Catholic Church.
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Theologians recently attributed a second miracle — the curing of a Costa Rican woman with a brain injury — to Pope John Paul II. The Vatican announced Friday that Pope John XXIII a saint.
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The resignations came just days after a senior cleric with ties to the institution was arrested after being caught with about $26 million in cash he was trying to bring into Italy from Switzerland. Pope Francis recently set up a special commission of inquiry to resolve the bank's problems.
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A Costa Rican woman was reportedly cured of a severe brain injury when her family prayed to the late pontiff.
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The account has gained more than 100,000 followers worldwide in less than six months. Followers, who represent a wide variety of professions and religions, are convinced the language of the ancient Romans is perfectly suited to 21st century social media.
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The company sent the pope two motorcycles and a leather jacket. The occasion is a gathering of bikers in Vatican City this weekend hoping for a blessing of the motorbikes.
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Composer Mark Adamo has made his mark turning classic books, including Little Women and the Greek drama Lysistrata, into operas. His latest, The Gospel of Mary Magdalene, covers more sensitive territory, examining the titular figure's relationship to Jesus — outside the canonical Bible.
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His comments are an apparent confirmation of reports in Italian media that the Vatican denied in February.
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Francis says that anybody who seeks the pontiff's job "doesn't care much for themselves." He explains that he also rejected living in the papal apartments because he doesn't like living alone.