Watch CBS News

Church

hartmanjustice-1908409-640x360.jpg

A pen pal's unswerving faith

Twenty-five years ago, an inmate serving a life sentence in a Missouri prison wrote to a church outside St. Louis hoping that someone would write back. Ever since, Ginny Schrappen corresponded with Lamar Johnson, convinced that his 1995 murder conviction was wrong. In February 2023, Johnson was exonerated and released from prison. Now, the 80-year-old retired schoolteacher could finally welcome the former inmate in her home. Steve Hartman reports.

10123-benedict-xvi-1920-1588981-640x360.jpg

The life of Benedict XVI, the Pope Emeritus

Benedict XVI was the first German pope in a thousand years, and the first pontiff to resign from office since 1415. His death on Saturday, at age 95, brought acknowledgements of a mixed legacy from his strict defense of church doctrine. But as correspondent Seth Doane reports, some of the conservative pope's actions – from his apology to victims of abuse in the church, to reaching out to other faiths, and then his monastic retirement – were unprecedented.

Show More
View CBS News In
CBS News App Open
Chrome Safari Continue
Be the first to know
Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting.