Giovanna Dell'orto
Giovanna Dell'orto is an author at Religion News Service.
All Stories by Giovanna Dell'orto
Unfazed by danger and power, Guatemalan cardinal keeps up fight for migrants and the poor
By Giovanna Dell'orto — April 15, 2024
HUEHUETENANGO, Guatemala (AP) — Elevated by Pope Francis to the top hierarchy of the Catholic Church, Cardinal Álvaro Ramazzini has continued his unflinching focus on the poor, the Indigenous and the migrant.
Desperate young Guatemalans try to reach the US even after horrific deaths of migrating relatives
By Giovanna Dell'orto — April 11, 2024
COMITANCILLO, Guatemala (AP) — Tens of thousands of youths from this region of Guatemala would rather take deadly risks than stay behind where they see no future.
Fasting at school? More Muslim students in the US are getting support during Ramadan
By Darren Sands, Corey Williams, Giovanna Dell'orto, and Mariam Fam — March 18, 2024
DEARBORN, Mich. (AP) — Fasting is not required of young children, but many Muslim children like to fast to share in the month's rituals and emulate parents and older siblings, according to the Islamic Networks Group.
As threats to Black cemeteries persist, a movement to preserve their sacred heritage gains strength
By Darren Sands and Giovanna Dell'orto — March 15, 2024
MIAMI (AP) — When sites of sacred cultural memory are desecrated, it adds additional trauma to the indignity of being segregated even in death, said the executive director of the African American Cultural Heritage Action Fund.
Virgin of Charity unites all Cubans — Catholics, Santeria followers, exiled and back on the island
By Luis Andres Henao and Giovanna Dell'orto — March 14, 2024
EL COBRE, Cuba (AP) — The cult of the Virgin of Charity became part of Cuban nationalism in late 19th century.
Nicaragua’s crackdown on Catholic Church spreads fear among the faithful, there and in exile
By Giovanna Dell'orto — February 12, 2024
MIAMI (AP) — Like several Latin American governments tracing their roots back to socialist revolutions, Nicaragua’s has had an uneven relationship with faith leaders for decades.
Fueled by unprecedented border crossings, a record 3 million cases clog US immigration courts
By Giovanna Dell'orto — January 17, 2024
MIAMI (AP) — About 261,000 cases of migrants placed in removal proceedings are pending in the Miami court — the largest docket in the country.
Convent-made delicacies, a Christmas favorite, help monks and nuns win fans and pay the bills
By Giovanna Dell'orto and MarÍa Teresa HernÁndez — December 19, 2023
MEXICO CITY (AP) — Most nuns and monks involved in preparing the delicacies are quick to point out that their main mission is to pray, not to cook — and that doing both involves finding a delicate balance.
In Florida farmland, Guadalupe feast celebrates, sustains 60-year-old mission to migrant workers
By Giovanna Dell'orto — December 13, 2023
NARANJA, Fla. (AP) — The feast draws millions of pilgrims to the main basilica in Mexico City and to churches big and small across the Americas around Dec. 12.
Hanukkah message of light in darkness feels uniquely relevant to US Jews amid war, antisemitism
By Giovanna Dell'orto — December 6, 2023
MIAMI BEACH, Fla. (AP) — Many feel that having a joyful Hanukkah is another way to show defiance to terror — even though most will include in their family celebration somber prayers for the hostages still held by Hamas.
What to know about Hanukkah and how it’s celebrated around the world
By Giovanna Dell'orto — November 30, 2023
(AP) — On eight consecutive nightfalls, Jews gather with family and friends to light one additional candle in the menorah — a multibranched candelabra.
In the US, Hmong ‘new year’ recalls ancestral spirits while teaching traditions to new generations
By Giovanna Dell'orto — November 27, 2023
ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) — The majority of the approximately 300,000 Hmong in the United States are animists and believe that spirits live throughout the physical world.
Nicaragua’s exiled clergy and faithful in Miami keep up struggle for human rights at Mass
By Giovanna Dell'orto — November 16, 2023
MIAMI (AP) — For Nicaguaran worshippers who have fled or been exiled, the Sunday afternoon Mass is a means of pushing back against the regime’s violent suppression of critics.
As a DJ, village priest in Portugal cues up faith and electronic dance music for global youth
By Giovanna Dell'orto — November 10, 2023
LAÚNDOS, Portugal (AP) — “It’s very important to me to not only be the priest DJ, but be the shepherd of the community,” he said
Clergy burnout is a growing concern in polarized churches. A summit offers coping strategies
By Giovanna Dell'orto — October 9, 2023
STILLWATER, Minn. (AP) — Faith leaders have increasingly stepped into the frontlines of care for growing mental health distress across the U.S., from college campuses to the military and rural communities.
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