World Jul 05 Vatican excommunicates former ambassador to the U.S., declaring him guilty of schism The Vatican on Friday excommunicated its former ambassador to Washington after finding him guilty of schism, an inevitable outcome for Archbishop Carlo Maria Vigano. The conservative had became one of Pope Francis' most ardent critics and a symbol of the polarized Catholic…
World Jun 14 Pope Francis becomes first pontiff to address G7 summit, pushes for stronger guardrails on AI The Argentine pope used his annual peace message this year to call for an international treaty to ensure AI is developed and used ethically.
World May 28 Pope Francis apologizes after using offensive slur in meeting about ban on gay priests Italian is not Francis’ mother tongue language, and the Argentine pope has made linguistic gaffes in the past that raised eyebrows.
World Apr 08 Vatican characterizes gender-affirming surgery, surrogacy as violations of human dignity Advocates for LGBTQ+ Catholics immediately criticized the document as outdated, harmful and contrary to the stated goal of recognizing the “infinite dignity” of all of God's children.
World Mar 31 Pope Francis overcomes health concerns to preside over windy Easter Sunday Mass Rallying from a winter-long bout of respiratory problems, Pope Francis led some 60,000 people in Easter celebrations Sunday and made a strong appeal for a cease-fire in Gaza and a prisoner swap between Russia and Ukraine.
World Mar 30 Pope presides over Easter Vigil at the Vatican after last-minute Good Friday absence Pope Francis presided over the Vatican's somber Easter Vigil service on Saturday night, delivering a 10-minute homily and baptizing eight people, a day after suddenly skipping the Good Friday procession at the Colosseum as a health precaution.
Politics Mar 29 Pope skips Good Friday event to preserve health ahead of Easter, Vatican says Francis had been expected to preside over the Way of the Cross procession, which re-enacts Christ's Passion and crucifixion, and composed the meditations that are read aloud at each station.
World Feb 19 The keeper of the Vatican's secrets is revealing century-old discoveries for forthcoming book The longtime prefect of the Vatican Secret Archive is spilling the beans for the first time. He is revealing some of the secrets he has uncovered in the 45 years he has worked in one of the world's most important,…
World Jan 08 Pope Francis calls for universal ban on surrogacy The speech also listed the threats to global peace and human dignity, including Russia’s war in Ukraine, the Israel-Gaza war, migration and climate crises and the “immoral” production of nuclear and conventional weapons.
World Dec 25 Amid Israel-Hamas war, Pope Francis calls for worldwide peace on Christmas Speaking from the loggia of St. Peter’s Basilica to the throngs of people below, Francis said he grieved the “abominable attack” of Hamas against southern Israel on Oct. 7 and called for the release of hostages.