Brazil’s Yanomami leader asks the Pope to support President Lula in reversing damage to the Amazon
Vatican City AP Pope Francis met Wednesday with a leader of Brazil’s Yanomami people, who asked for papal backing for President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva ’s efforts to reverse decades of exploitation of the Amazon and better protect its Indigenous peoples. Davi Kopenawa, a Yanomami shaman, said he came to the Vatican at Francis’ invitation to brief him […]
Essay: New Vatican document combines modern transparency with eternal teaching
US Catholic commentator THOMAS REESE takes, in an article first published on Religion News Service, a deeper look at the new Vatican document ‘Dignitas infinita’ (‘Infinite Dignity’)…
Vatican foreign minister travels to Vietnam in unprecedented visit
Hanoi, Vietnam Reuters The Vatican’s foreign minister Paul Richard Gallagher began an unprecedented six-day visit to Communist-ruled Vietnam on Tuesday as the two sides work on closer relations. Gallagher’s trip, the first to Vietnam for a Vatican foreign minister, could be followed by other top-level visits, including Pope Francis, who the Vatican has said is […]
Pope marks six-month anniversary of Hamas attacks by meeting with relatives of hostages
Vatican City AP Pope Francis met Monday with relatives of hostages taken by Hamas on 7th October, marking the six-month anniversary of the attack in southern Israel with an hour-long audience. Pope Francis meets with relatives of Israeli hostages being held by Hamas, at the Vatican, on Monday, 8th April, 2024. PICTURE: Vatican Media via […]
Conversations: Photographer Stephen Wilkes’ Easter Sunday at St Peter’s
JIM MCDERMOTT reports, in an article first published on Religion News Service, that an exhibition of the photographer’s Day and Night view of the Vatican on Easter, one in a series of Wilkes’ epic shots of religion festivals, vaults the day into an almost cosmological framework…
Peru archbishop who sued two journalists over reports on abuses, financial corruption resigns early
Rome, Italy AP A Peruvian archbishop who sued two journalists over their reports about sexual abuse and alleged financial corruption in his religious movement, Sodalitium Christianae Vitae, has resigned amid a Vatican investigation. Pope Francis on Tuesday accepted the resignation of Piura Archbishop José Eguren. At 67, he is several years shy of the normal retirement age […]
Pope shows off rosary of slain Ukrainian soldier, denounces “madness of war”; Indonesian minister says Pope planning visit
Rome, Italy AP Pope Francis led thousands of people in a moment of silence Wednesday to pray for the aid workers killed by an Israeli strike in Gaza and a young Ukrainian soldier named Oleksandre who was killed in ‘’this madness of war”. Francis appealed anew for an immediate cease-fire in Gaza and the release […]
Pope exposes confidential details of past conclaves and settles scores with Pope Benedict XVI’s aide
Vatican City AP Pope Francis has exposed the political “maneuvers” used to sway votes during the two most recent elections of popes, while denying he is planning to reform the process for future conclaves, in a book-length interview published Tuesday. The revelations are contained in The Successor: My Memories of Pope Benedict XVI, in which the Argentine […]
Pope overcomes health concerns to preside over Easter Mass and appeal for peace in Gaza and Ukraine
Updated: 8am, 1st April, 2024 (AEDT) Rome. Italy AP Pope Francis rallied from a winter-long bout of respiratory problems to lead some 60,000 people in Easter celebrations Sunday, making a strong appeal for a cease-fire in Gaza and a prisoner swap between Russia and Ukraine. Francis presided over Easter Sunday Mass in a flower-decked St […]
Pope soldiers through Easter Vigil after missing procession
Vatican City Reuters Pope Francis on Saturday soldiered through a more than two-hour Easter Vigil Mass in St Peter’s Basilica, one of the longest services in Catholic liturgy, amid renewed concerns about the 87-year-old’s frail condition. His voice at times sounded raspy and out of breath, but he read out all of his prepared texts, […]