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KRAKOW, POLAND (CNA/EWTN News) - Pope Francis paid a solemn visit to the Auschwitz and Birkenau concentration camps on Friday, where over a million people are believed to have lost their lives. At the memorials, he gave no speech and prayed in silence, but instead wrote in the guest book two simple lines begging for God's mercy and forgiveness.

KRAKOW, POLAND - Poland has a lot to offer Catholic pilgrims looking for history and stories associated with their, and other, faiths.

St. Vincent de Paul Summer Camp in Angola on the Lake is having its first ever reunion on Saturday, Aug. 6. This fun event will be a celebration of many years of camp life that brought much joy to campers of all faiths.

The Legion of Mary will appear on Filipino Day at the Our Lady of Fatima Shrine in Lewiston on Saturday, July 30, from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. The day will include a rosary procession and Mass, as well as a potluck lunch at 12:30 p.m., and a Filipino cultural presentation.

About 200 pilgrims from the Diocese of Buffalo are currently attending World Youth Day 2016 in Krakow, Poland, and so are we. Staff reporter Patrick J. Buechi is documenting the journey of these local Catholics, and you can see it for yourself in our new photo gallery.

CZESTOCHOWA, POLAND (CNA/EWTN News) - Those who embrace their own littleness become the "spokespersons" of God, Pope Francis said during Mass at the shrine of Our Lady of Czestochowa, celebrating the 1050 anniversary of Poland becoming a Christian nation. It was the first major event of the Pope's trip to the country for the 31st World Youth Day.

PHILADELPHIA, PA. (CNA/EWTN News) - The Democratic Party platform has drawn the ire of critics - including a member of Barack Obama's former campaign - who say its extreme positions on abortion shut out millions of pro-life voters.

KRAKOW, POLAND - The Tauron Arena in Krakow, Poland, hosted cardinals, singers, theologians and pilgrims as it became Mercy Center, a main site for World Youth Day 2016.

KRAKOW, POLAND (CNA/EWTN News) - On his first night in Krakow Pope Francis was already stirring things up with participants in WYD by hosting an off-the-cuff Q and A and telling them to 'make chaos' by spreading the joy of their faith.

VATICAN CITY (CNA/EWTN News) - On the flight to Poland for World Youth Day, Pope Francis on Wednesday responded to recent violence across the globe by saying that the world is at war.

KRAKOW, POLAND - World Youth Day 2016 officially kicked off Tuesday, July 26, at 6 p.m., with a welcoming Mass by the shepherd of Krakow, Cardinal Stanislaw Dziwisz.

WASHINGTON—Archbishop Joseph E. Kurtz of Louisville, Kentucky, president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) expressed prayers and support after the latest terrorist attack on a Catholic parish in Normandy, France, that left a priest dead and another person seriously injured.

Laura Szczepankiewicz came to Krakow to meet as many people as she could. And she has the photographic proof to show she met her goal.

VATICAN CITY (CNA/EWTN News) - Pope Francis has decried the "absurd violence" which has left an elderly priest dead after his church in northern France was taken hostage during Mass.

KRAKOW, POLAND - On Sunday, July 24, World Youth Day pilgrims got as close as they could to a full night's sleep before heading out at 8 a.m. to Czestochowa, Poland to visit the Jasna Góra Monastery and shrine.

VATICAN CITY (CNA/EWTN News) - Pope Francis has asked for prayers as he, and all the pilgrims attending this year's World Youth Day, prepare to make their way to Krakow, Poland for the international event.

WASHINGTON, DC (CNA/EWTN News) - After several shootings and increased racial tensions around the country, the head of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops has called for a national day of prayer and appointed a task force devoted to peace and unity.

The Our Lady of Charity Parish "Summerfest" will take place from Thursday, July 28, through Saturday, July 30, at St. Ambrose located at 65 Ridgewood Road, Buffalo. The annual event benefits the entire parish, which includes the former parishes of St. Ambrose, Holy Family and St. Agatha.

While pilgrims are in Poland celebrating with the pope, locals will be doing the same at the seminary.

This week we talk about Healthy Baby Festivals sponsored by the Catholic Charities WIC program.

One of the goals at Catholic Academy of Niagara Falls is to lay the foundation of STREAM, starting in pre-K, and to prepare them with 21st century skills that will help them be successful in today's world.

GETZVILLE — All are invited to join and celebrate the Year of Mercy in a three-day program titled, "Rediscovering The Mercy of God in this Jubilee Year of Mercy."

"We have an exciting journey ahead of us," said Bishop Richard J. Malone to some of the 200 local pilgrims who are headed for World Youth Day in Krakow, Poland. During a send-off Mass Friday afternoon at Our Lady of Victory Basilica, the bishop said "I ask you to keep in mind one simple truth. The experience we're sharing is all about Jesus."

Over the summer, bonfires blaze, children are out of school and summer clothes make their return from the back of the closet. However, for parishes in the diocese, summer is also a prime opportunity for faith formation and ensuring parishes and their faith remain strong throughout warmer months of the year in Buffalo.

Nearly six months into the public phase of the Upon This Rock capital campaign, some of the first parishes to get involved are seeing the benefits of the generous support from their parishioners.

VATICAN CITY (CNA/EWTN News) - Though rumors have been floating for some time, the Vatican confirmed that the Pope will meet with 10 Holocaust survivors during his upcoming visit to Auschwitz while in Poland for World Youth Day.

VATICAN CITY (CNA/EWTN News) - Even though World Youth Day doesn't start until next week, thousands of pilgrims from throughout the world are already descending on Krakow ahead of the official event.

CLEVELAND, OHIO (CNA) - The detailed platform adopted by the Republican Party this week received mixed reactions among Catholics for its positions.

WASHINGTON - In light of recent incidents of violence and racial tension in communities across the United States, the president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) has invited all dioceses across the country to unite in a Day of Prayer for Peace in Our Communities.

Mike Maloney will never forget the day in 2012 that his doctor told him he had ALS, also known as Lou Gehrig's disease. The life expectancy for someone with Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis is about three to five years. On that day, he began coming to grips with the possibility of having about a thousand days to live.

"We cannot be couch potatoes," said Sister Simone Campbell, SSS to dozens of people gathered at a busy intersection in downtown Buffalo. It was part of her 'Nuns on the Bus' tour which stopped briefly, Wednesday morning, at St Paul's Episcopal Church.

Christian pilgrimages began as a following in the footsteps of Jesus. Today, the term is used to describe a journey to a religious shrine for the purpose of strengthening one's faith. A pilgrim, therefore, is a person who travels to grow in his or her faith, experience the faith, and often, to share one's faith.

One of the highlights of summer in the Southtowns each year is the lawn fete at St. John Vianney Parish in Orchard Park. The 24th annual event will take place from Friday, July 22, to Sunday, July 24. The lawn fete will run on Friday and Saturday from 6 to 11 p.m., and Sunday from 1 to 10 p.m.

I offer my prayers for the officers and families affected by the horrible shooting in Baton Rouge. We find ourselves amid a prolonged prayer of lament as we join to console the grieving and support the suffering. People are suffering because their uniform is blue, suffering because their skin is black and suffering simply because of their station in life.

WASHINGTON - More than 40,000 Americans are registered to attend World Youth Day (WYD), July 26-31, in Krakow, Poland. To assist this record breaking number of participants from the United States, the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops' (USCCB) Secretariat of Laity, Marriage, Family Life and Youth has lined up a series of resources and a variety of digital platforms to engage youth and young adults at home and abroad.

VATICAN CITY (CNA/EWTN News) - Several recent appointments by Pope Francis to Vatican departments show that his reform of the Roman Curia is in tune with what he's said from the beginning about his vision for the Church.

United States have observed the Fortnight for Freedom in preparation for Independence Day on July 4. The theme set by the U.S. Bishops' Conference for this year's fortnight is "Witnesses to Freedom."

In this week's podcast, we hear about the latest happenings at Christ the King Seminary with President-Rector, Father Joseph Gatto.

NIAGARA UNIVERSITY — A member of the Daughters of Charity Province of St. Louise has been assigned to Niagara University to extend her ministry and service to Niagara Falls and the campus community.

Dr. Catherine M. Griswold has been named dean of the Catherine McAuley School of Nursing at Trocaire College in Buffalo.