Pope demotes Cardinal Burke from Vatican post
VATICAN CITY - Pope Francis has removed outspoken U.S. Cardinal Raymond Burke as head of the Vatican's highest court and named him to a largely ceremonial post for a chivalric religious order.
To heart of Europe: Pope expected to talk dignity, jobs, family life
VATICAN CITY - Pope Francis, who has called the Catholic Church to go out to the peripheries and who described himself as coming from "the end of the Earth," will visit the heart of European secular and economic power: the European Parliament and the Council of Europe.
Pope Francis suggests no-cost annulments in divorce cases
VATICAN CITY - Pope Francis raised the prospect of no-cost marriage annulments Nov. 5 after revealing he had dismissed a Church official for selling annulments for thousands of dollars, which he called a “public scandal.”
Pope Francis to open Vatican conference on traditional marriage
VATICAN CITY - A month after closing a Synod of Bishops on the family stirred by controversy over divorce, same-sex unions and other non-marital relationships, Pope Francis will open an interreligious conference dedicated to traditional marriage.
Praying for the dead, pope asks special prayers for victims of war
VATICAN CITY - The early November feasts of All Saints and All Souls call Catholics to contemplate their ultimate destiny, hope in the eternal happiness of their beloved dead and remember the thousands of innocent people dying each day because of human evil and selfishness.
Vatican official: Syria's war is part of regional humanitarian crisis
BEIRUT, Lebanon - A Vatican official who just returned from a visit to Syria said "the humanitarian situation is worse than I thought."
Divisions aside, Christians must work together to evangelize, pope says
VATICAN CITY - Although divided by ancient disputes and new developments, Christians in Europe still have an obligation to work together to help confused men and women find the answers to their spiritual thirst and their search for life's ultimate meaning, Pope Francis said.
Be ready with God's weaponry; devil is real, pope says
VATICAN CITY - Christian life is a constant battle against the devil, who is not the stuff of legend, but really exists, Pope Francis said in a morning homily.
Pope urges activists to struggle against 'structural causes' of poverty
VATICAN CITY - Pope Francis urged an international gathering of grassroots social activists to struggle against the "structural causes" of poverty and inequality, with a "revolutionary" program drawn from the Gospels.
Pope says official exorcists show church's love for the suffering
VATICAN CITY - Exorcists, assigned to that ministry by their bishops, demonstrate the love and care of the church for "those who suffer because of the work of the devil," Pope Francis said in a message to the International Association of Exorcists.
Pope Francis: ‘Evolution … is not inconsistent with the notion of creation’
VATICAN CITY - Pope Francis on Monday (Oct. 27) waded into the controversial debate over the origins of human life, saying the big bang theory did not contradict the role of a divine creator, but even required it.