WEBSTER – People from All Saints Academy are aiming to evangelize with an outdoor Advent wreath the size of a large tire. It is displayed on the lawn of the Emmaus Center at 17 East Main St.

Starting an African Catholic community at St. Cecilia Parish in Leominster is a top priority for the diocesan African Ministry during its Year of Evangelization, according to Father Enoch K. Kyeremateng, chaplain.

Suicide rates, including adolescent suicide, are increasing, said Father Stephen E. Lundrigan at a workshop for catechetical leaders, “Addressing Suicide and Self-Harm."

Bishop McManus is asked: What was it like meeting with Pope Francis? I have remarked to many people that it was sometimes like talking with your grandfather .... It was a very honest and thoughtful discussion with him.

“Catholic education is a beacon of hope ...," said Deborah O’Neil, principal of St. Bernadette Elementary, Northborough. Legacy of Hope seeks grow Catholic Schools Endowment Fund by $4,000,000.

Robea Nordman is a mixed-media artist. Recently she has taken on a new project involving the saints that is expanding her understanding of both her art and her faith, and how the two work together. 

See photos of Bishop's Thanksgiving Dinner. Hundreds attended, hundreds served.

Father Michael P. Bafaro, 92, of Worcester, long-time pastor at Our Lady of Mount Carmel-Saint Ann Church, passed away Nov. 28, at St. Vincent Hospital.

WORCESTER - Paula Kosky Hamann passed away peacefully on Nov. 27. She was director of Enrollment Management for the Diocese of Worcester Schools.

Catholic Charities Worcester County awarded the Emerald Club for supporting Mercy Centre programs, and its board clerk Kevin Kieler for helping with the acquisition and sale of property.

WORCESTER – One of the ways that God brings people to faith and restores their faith is through miracles. Knowing this, Tim Francis, the founder of “You Shall Believe,” has conducted more than 400 “Science Tests Faith” parish missions to re-ignite the faith of non-practicing Catholics, bring non-Catholics to faith and give practicing Catholics the tools needed to help loved ones return to the Church.

Michelle Schmidt, who directed a crisis pregnancy center in Southfield, Michigan, for 12 years, made connections between abortion and the Eucharist at the Worcester Catholic Women's Conference Saturday at Assumption College. Another speaker was Kathleen Beckman, lay coordinator of deliverance and exorcism ministry for the Diocese of Orange, California.

WORCESTER – Before Mother Miriam of the Lamb of God became the Benedictine she is today, she was Rosalind Moss, a girl who grew up in a traditional Jewish home in New York. At the Worcester Catholic Women’s Conference Saturday at Assumption College, she shared her journey to the Catholic faith.

WORCESTER – The Worcester Catholic Women’s Conference, with its theme, “The Eucharist: The Source and Summit of Our Faith,” lit the path to Advent and beyond for hundreds of women. Presented by the diocese and held at Assumption College Saturday, the sold-out conference included Mass celebrated by Bishop McManus, and presentations by speakers: Benedictine Mother Miriam of the Lamb of God, Michelle Schmidt, Kathleen Beckman and Tim Francis.

An inquiry into St. John Seminary found no evidence of criminal behavior or any sexual activity between seminarians and faculty members, the Archdiocese of Boston announced Friday.

FITCHBURG – The newly announced “All In: Campaign for St. Bernard’s High School” is seeking to raise more than $2 million to ensure the future of the high school.

WORCESTER – Teenagers received a message from the pope – and a lesson from a deceased firefighter – at the Diocesan High School Youth Rally, held Sunday at Assumption College.

WORCESTER – For more than 55 years, the Bishop of Worcester has hosted holiday dinners at Thanksgiving and Christmas provided by Catholic Charities Worcester County.

Lt. Jason Menard’s sacrifice fully answered the question, “Can anything good come from Worcester?” Father Walter J. Riley said at the fire lieutenant's funeral Nov. 18 in St. John Church.

Assumption College is to be renamed Assumption University next August, the school has announced.