Jan 29 Vatican to offer free shave and haircuts for homeless By Ruth Tam Starting Feb. 16, the Vatican will offer free shaves and haircuts to the homeless every Monday in St. Peter's Square. The project is being spearheaded by Pope Francis' almoner, Konrad Krajewski, who was inspired by a homeless man named Franco. Continue reading
Oct 30 Vatican sheds new light on Sistine Chapel's masterpieces By Alexis Cox The Sistine Chapel just got a makeover. Vatican officials unveiled new state-of-the-art energy-efficient lighting and air purification systems to protect Michelangelo’s more than 500-year old frescoes. The three-year-long installation cost roughly $3.8 million. Continue reading
Oct 22 Vatican Library digitizes ancient manuscripts, makes them available for free By Justin Scuiletti One of the oldest libraries on the planet is digitizing its archive of ancient manuscripts -- and they're all available to view free of charge. Continue reading
Oct 18 Catholic bishops nix pro-gay language from synod document in sign of split By Rialda Zukic Catholic bishops reversed on Saturday their initial welcome of gays, showing deep divisions on homosexuality and marriage at the end of a two-week meeting sought by Pope Francis. Continue reading
Oct 18 Rome mayor: Gay marriage transcriptions step toward equal rights By Rialda Zukic Rome's Mayor Ignazio Marino on Saturday went against Italy's law by registering 16 gay marriages that were celebrated in other countries. Continue reading
Oct 13 Watch Interpreting the Vatican's language shift on homosexuality, divorce By PBS News Hour A gathering of bishops convened by Pope Francis broke new ground on some taboos of the Catholic faith. While there was no change in doctrine on cohabitation, divorce and homosexuality, the Church signaled a shift away from condemning people who… Continue watching
Jul 09 Watch Pope Francis reforms scandal-ridden Vatican Bank in hopes of making it 'boringly successful' By PBS News Hour Continue watching
Jun 27 Former Vatican ambassador defrocked for sex abuse By Nora Daly The Vatican announced Friday that former Archbishop Josef Wesolowski has been dismissed from the clerical state after being found guilty of sexual abuse by a church tribunal. Wesolowski, a former apostolic nuncio, or papal diplomat, to the Dominican Republic, is… Continue reading
May 26 Watch Pope Francis performs 'balancing act' of agendas on Middle East visit By PBS News Hour Juggling the political and religious rivalries between Israel and the Palestinians during his trip to the Middle East, Pope Francis called on Mahmoud Abbas and Shimon Peres to join him at the Vatican for prayer and reflection. Jeffrey Brown gets… Continue watching
Apr 25 Watch Pilgrims gather at the Vatican to witness canonization of two popes By PBS News Hour Continue watching