Sep 01 Pope Francis is embarking on his longest and most challenging trip to Asia yet. Here's what to expect By Nicole Winfield, Associated Press Francis will clock 20,390 miles by air during his Sept. 2-13 visit to Indonesia, Papua New Guinea, East Timor and Singapore, far surpassing any of his previous 44 foreign trips and notching one of the longest papal trips ever, both… Continue reading
Aug 28 Pope Francis to visit East Timor as church sex abuse scandals there are met by silence By Niniek Karmini, David Rising, Nicole Winfield, Associated Press Pope Francis will come face to face with the Timorese faithful on his first trip to the country but so far, there is no indication he will meet with any victims or even mention the abuse directly. Continue reading
Jun 14 Pope Francis becomes first pontiff to address G7 summit, pushes for stronger guardrails on AI By Nicole Winfield, Kelvin Chan, Associated Press The Argentine pope used his annual peace message this year to call for an international treaty to ensure AI is developed and used ethically. Continue reading
May 28 Watch 5:48 Pope apologizes for using slur while discussing opposition to gay men in priesthood By Geoff Bennett, Karina Cuevas Pope Francis issued a rare apology after word broke that he used a derogatory Italian slur referring to gay men while reaffirming his position against their admission to seminaries and priesthood. The Pope made the remark in a closed-door meeting… Continue watching
May 28 Pope Francis apologizes after using offensive slur in meeting about ban on gay priests By Nicole Winfield, Associated Press Italian is not Francis’ mother tongue language, and the Argentine pope has made linguistic gaffes in the past that raised eyebrows. Continue reading
Apr 08 Vatican characterizes gender-affirming surgery, surrogacy as violations of human dignity By Nicole Winfield, Associated Press Advocates for LGBTQ+ Catholics immediately criticized the document as outdated, harmful and contrary to the stated goal of recognizing the “infinite dignity” of all of God's children. Continue reading
Mar 31 Pope Francis overcomes health concerns to preside over windy Easter Sunday Mass By Nicole Winfield, Associated Press 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. Continue reading
Mar 30 Pope presides over Easter Vigil at the Vatican after last-minute Good Friday absence By Nicole Winfield, Associated Press 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. Continue reading
Mar 29 Pope skips Good Friday event to preserve health ahead of Easter, Vatican says By Nicole Winfield, Andrew Medichini, Silvia Stellacci, Aritz Parra, Associated Press 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. Continue reading
Feb 19 The keeper of the Vatican's secrets is revealing century-old discoveries for forthcoming book By Nicole Winfield, Associated Press 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,… Continue reading