FAITH/STORIES

Pope Francis speaks to visitors gathered to pray the Angelus in St. Peter's Square at the Vatican Oct. 22, 2023.
October 23, 2023

Pope Francis again calls for release of hostages in Gaza, discusses aid with Biden

Pope Francis called for the release of Israeli hostages held in Gaza and spoke with U.S. President Joe Biden to discuss the humanitarian crisis and the need to de-escalate violence in the region.

St. John Paul II appears on the balcony at St. Peter’s Basilica following his election to head the Church Oct. 16, 1978.

John Paul II still looms large over Vatican

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Raniero Mancinelli has been an ecclesiastical tailor for more than 40 years. He owns a shop at Borgo Pio, one of the famous Roman streets leading straight to the Vatican gate of Porta Sant’Anna.

Pope Francis joins leaders of the assembly of the Synod of Bishops for prayer before a working session in the Vatican's Paul VI Audience Hall Oct. 17, 2023.

Pope Francis mentions planned Argentina trip, hints at Oceania tour

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Pope Francis said a trip to his native Argentina remains on his schedule and that he has been encouraged to travel through Oceania.

A bishop watches a video screen as his tablet with synod documents is open during the first session of the assembly of the Synod of Bishops in the Paul VI Audience Hall at the Vatican Oct. 4, 2023.

Confidential synod documents made available on unsecured server

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Some confidential documents from the assembly of the Synod of Bishops were accessible online to anyone who had the address before synod officials restored the need for a username and password, said Paolo Ruffini, prefect of the Dicastery for Communication.

Panelists open the conference “New Documents from the Pontificate of Pope Pius XII” at the Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome, Oct. 9, 2023. From the left are Rome Chief Rabbi Riccardo Di Segni; Cardinal Pietro Parolin, Vatican secretary of state; Auxiliary Bishop Étienne Vetö of Reims, France, and Suzanne Brown-Fleming from the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum.

Study, not blame or shame, needed with pope's wartime record, scholar says

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The era of divisive debate about Pope Pius XII has been left behind, and now Catholics and Jews, historians and theologians must take up serious and collaborative study, said the co-organizer of a major conference looking at the early results of new research into the wartime pontificate.

October 10, 2023
A woman holds up a sign that say "Pace," peace in Italian, as Pope Francis appeals for an end to the fighting between Israel and Palestine after reciting the Angelus prayer Oct. 8, 2023, with visitors in St. Peter's Square at the Vatican.

Saying terrorism, war solve nothing, Pope Francis prays for peace

"War is a defeat," Pope Francis insisted as he called for prayers for peace in Israel and Palestine.

Rock formations and mountains are pictured near Los Alamos, N.M., Nov. 21, 2020.

'Laudate Deum': Planet mirrors a deeply flawed view of human life and activity

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Pope Francis claims the clock is ticking on the dangers of climate change -- and both a paradigm shift and practical action are critically needed to avert looming disasters in nature and human society.

Pope Francis speaks to visitors during his weekly general audience in St. Peter’s Square at the Vatican, Sept. 27, 2023.

Pope Francis responds to cardinals on blessings for homosexuals, female priests

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The Catholic Church, in pursuit of "pastoral prudence," should discern if there are ways of giving blessings to homosexual persons that do not alter the church's teaching on marriage, Pope Francis said.

New cardinals line up to receive their red biretta and scroll from Pope Francis during a consistory for the creation of 21 new cardinals in St. Peter's Square at the Vatican Sept. 30, 2023.

Creating cardinals from 16 nations, Pope Francis asks them to join church 'symphony'

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Coming from different parts of the world and having different experiences and talents, members of the College of Cardinals are called to create a "symphony," listening to one another and to the Holy Spirit, Pope Francis said.

Red birettas and scrolls lie on a table before Pope Francis distributes them to new cardinals at a consistory in St. Peter's Square at the Vatican Sept. 30, 2023.

Hundreds stand in line to greet new cardinals from the 'peripheries'

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One consequence of Pope Francis choosing new cardinals from the "peripheries" is that friends, family and fans of the newly elevated are just as shocked and surprised as the new cardinals are themselves to have been given the honor.

Pope Francis arrives for a meeting with the rectors of public and private universities from Latin America and the Caribbean at the Vatican Sept. 21, 2023. Responding to questions, the pope said his new document on the environment would be called "Laudate Deum" (Praise God).

Pope Francis says his new ecology document is titled 'Laudate Deum'

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Pope Francis said the title of his new letter on the environment will be "Laudate Deum," (Praise God), a frequent refrain in several psalms, including Psalm 148, which tells the heavens and the angels and the sun and moon to praise the Lord.

Pope Francis meets with officials of the upcoming assembly of the Synod of Bishops in the library of the Vatican's Apostolic Palace Sept. 18, 2023. From the left are: Father Riccardo Battocchio, one of the synod's special secretaries; Cardinal Jean-Claude Hollerich, relator general; Cardinal Mario Grech, secretary-general of the synod secretariat; and Jesuit Father Giacomo Costa, the other special secretary of the synod assembly scheduled for Oct. 4-19.

Pope Francis names two Chinese bishops to synod; Vatican publishes synod schedule

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On the recommendation of the Catholic bishops of mainland China in consultation with the Chinese government, Pope Francis has named two bishops from the country's mainland as members of the assembly of the Synod of Bishops.

Argentina's flag is seen as Pope Francis greets people during his general audience in the Paul VI hall at the Vatican Dec. 14, 2022.

Pope Francis won't travel to Argentina if not invited, doctrine prefect says

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Comments by a leading Argentinian presidential candidate may have dampened hopes that Pope Francis would soon visit his home country for the first time since becoming pope, the prefect of the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith said.

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