Cindy Wooden, Catholic News Service

Cindy Wooden, Catholic News Service

VATICAN CITY – The theological work and papal teaching of retired Pope Benedict XVI "continue to be a living and precious heritage for the church," Pope Francis said.

VATICAN CITY – People who are dying must be accompanied with the love of family members and the care of medical professionals, but there is no requirement that every means available must be used to prolong their lives, Pope Francis said.

VATICAN CITY – Two women may hold the key to clearing up questions still surrounding the death of Pope John Paul I and speed his journey to canonization.
VATICAN CITY – Christians and Muslims believe that freedom of conscience and religion are the most important human rights and, "therefore, our collective duty demands that we respect, preserve and promote such rights," said members of the Catholic-Muslim Forum.
VATICAN – As minorities living in a troubled land, Christians in the Holy Land must forgive each other for past mistakes and work together for the future of their communities, Pope Francis told the Greek Orthodox patriarch of Jerusalem.
VATICAN – Catholics must make a real effort to share the Gospel with all people, fighting "the recurring temptation" that leads some to focus only on internal church matters or to be pessimistic about evangelization efforts, Pope Francis wrote.

VATICAN CITY – Pope Francis' recent statement that the death penalty is incompatible with the Gospel focused less on a government's role in protecting its people and more on the need to defend the sacredness and dignity of every human life.

The death penalty, no matter how it is carried out, "is, in itself, contrary to the Gospel," Pope Francis said.
VATICAN CITY – Acknowledging how often the Catholic Church failed to protect children from sexual abuse, Pope Francis pledged "to work strenuously and with foresight for the protection of minors and their dignity," including online.

VATICAN CITY - An arrest warrant has been issued in Canada for Msgr. Carlo Capella, the Vatican diplomat recalled from service in Washington in late August, who already was the subject of a Vatican criminal investigation involving child pornography.