• Who will be pope? Meet some possible contenders

    Who will be pope? Meet some possible contenders

    May 02, 2025 02:45 PM EDT

    ... Italian edition of “Building a Bridge,” by the Rev. James Martin, an American Jesuit, about the church’s need to improve its outreach to the LGBTQ+ community. Zuppi wrote that building bridges with the community was a “difficult process, still unfolding.'' He recognized that “doing nothing, on the other hand ...

  • African Catholics say it would be nice to see themselves reflected in the next pope

    African Catholics say it would be nice to see themselves reflected in the next pope

    May 01, 2025 09:11 PM EDT

    ... 1.3 billion people. Catholic orthodoxy in Africa was at odds with Pope Francis’ pastoral vision of mercy and understanding for all marginalized groups, including LGBTQ+ Catholics. The real-life situation was reflected in the fictional Oscar-nominated film “Conclave,” in which one of the four contenders vying for the ...

  • LISTEN: Supreme Court hears case involving rights of students with disabilities

    LISTEN: Supreme Court hears case involving rights of students with disabilities

    Apr 28, 2025 09:56 PM EDT

    ... discrimination case despite findings that her Minnesota school hadn’t done enough to accommodate her. LISTEN: Supreme Court signals support for parents who object to LGBTQ books in public schools Their attorney, Roman Martinez, said the district’s position had shifted to a potential “five-alarm fire” for the disability ...

  • Vatican says conclave to elect new pope will start on May 7 as cardinals begin informal meetings

    Vatican says conclave to elect new pope will start on May 7 as cardinals begin informal meetings

    Apr 28, 2025 02:28 PM EDT

    ... asked if the African cardinals were coalescing around a particular candidate. African bishops had made a remarkably united stand last year against Francis' outreach to LGBTQ+ people, refusing to implement his declaration allowing priests to offer blessings to same-sex couples. Given such a stand, there is some speculation that ...

  • What to expect as the College of Cardinals prepares to elect a new pope

    What to expect as the College of Cardinals prepares to elect a new pope

    Apr 26, 2025 09:45 PM EDT

    ... want somebody who can steer the church safely through those storms, to internal church debates over contentious matters such as women and outreach to the LGBTQ community, to more broad social concerns such as migration and climate change and poverty, really trying to come to some sort of rough consensus ...

  • WATCH: Pope Francis’ funeral

    WATCH: Pope Francis’ funeral

    Apr 25, 2025 05:01 PM EDT

    ... Francis stressed this church’s role in reaching out to the margins of society, engaging with poor people and migrants and being more welcoming to LGBTQ+ people. As one cardinal put it, Francis was a “pastoral pope” who showed the church how "to go out and bring the Gospel to ...

  • Supreme Court hears major case on public school curriculum and parental rights

    Supreme Court hears major case on public school curriculum and parental rights

    Apr 22, 2025 10:40 PM EDT

    The Supreme Court heard arguments in a major case focused on parental rights and public schools. At the center of the case is a dispute over a curriculum in Maryland that included books featuring LGBTQ+ characters. Some parents asked for their children to be excused, but schools stopped allowing opt ...

  • A timeline of Pope Francis' life

    A timeline of Pope Francis' life

    Apr 21, 2025 08:40 PM EDT

    ... July 30, 2013: Declares “Who am I to judge?” when asked about a gay priest during a news conference, signaling a more welcoming stance toward LGBTQ+ community. Nov. 26, 2013: Issues mission statement for his papacy in Evangelii Gaudium, (“The Joy of the Gospel”), denouncing the world financial system that ...

  • Here are some of Pope Francis' memorable quotes

    Here are some of Pope Francis' memorable quotes

    Apr 21, 2025 04:22 PM EDT

    “Who am I to judge?” — Francis, responding to a question about a purportedly gay priest, in a comment that set the tone for a papacy more welcoming to LGBTQ+ Catholics, July 28, 2013 A greeting for the patriarch “We are brothers.” — Francis, to Patriarch Kirill during the first-ever ...

  • These cardinals are possible contenders to be the next pope

    These cardinals are possible contenders to be the next pope

    Apr 21, 2025 02:56 PM EDT

    ... Italian edition of “Building a Bridge,” by the Rev. James Martin, an American Jesuit, about the church’s need to improve its outreach to the LGBTQ+ community. Zuppi would be a candidate in Francis’ tradition of ministering to those on the margins, although his relative youth would count against him ...