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May 14, 2020

Vatican workers sanitize St. Peter's Basilica

Vatican workers in protective gear sanitize various surfaces inside St. Peter's Basilica at the Vatican May 15, 2020, ahead of the resumption of Masses during the COVID-19 pandemic.

VATICAN CITY -- In preparation for the May 18 resumption of public liturgies in Italy and a morning Mass with Pope Francis at the tomb of St. John Paul II, Vatican workers cleaned and sanitized the inside of St. Peter's Basilica May 15.

Published in International
March 27, 2020

In Rome, ‘it feels like living in a war’

Medical workers at Gemelli Hospital in Rome wear protective suits as they attend an elderly coronavirus patient.

VANCOUVER -- Vancouver priest Fr. Davide Lanzani compares Rome to a war zone.

Published in Canada
April 15, 2019

Pope makes surprise visit to community for people with Alzheimer's

Pope Francis greets Emanuele Village residents April 12, 2019, in Rome. People who live there have Alzheimer's disease.

ROME - Drawing attention to the special needs of people with Alzheimer's disease, Pope Francis made an afternoon visit to a community of group homes designed to keep residents active and living as normal a life as possible.

Published in Vatican
April 4, 2019

Toronto students connect with old Church in Europe

Students from Chaminade College School pose inside of the Colosseum in Rome. Seventeen students spent their March break visting churches and historical sites across Europe.

Jacob Boodoo hadn’t set foot on a plane since he was two years old so boarding a flight to Europe during March break was already an adventure for the 16-year-old.

Published in Youth Speak News
March 26, 2019

Pope Francis urges preservation of Rome's history, spiritual traditions

Pope Francis waves from a balcony alongside Rome Mayor Virginia Raggi during a visit to City Hall March 26, 2019.
VATICAN – As the capital of Italy and center of Catholicism, the city of Rome must work with the Catholic Church to preserve and defend its rich historical and spiritual traditions, Pope Francis said.
Published in International
March 19, 2019

Cardinal Parolin celebrates 150th anniversary of children's hospital

Pope Francis greets a patient during an unannounced visit to the Palidoro Bambino Gesu Hospital, in Fiumicino, outside Rome, in this Jan. 5, 2018, file photo.
VATICAN – The Vatican-owned Bambino Gesu Children's Hospital in Rome is a sign of the Catholic Church's commitment to caring for and protecting the dignity of the sick, said Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the Vatican secretary of state.
Published in International
February 11, 2019

People need liberation and healing, not condemnation, Pope says

Pope Francis leads an audience with students and staff of the Accademia Alfonsiana at the Vatican Feb. 9, 2019.
VATICAN – Taking their cue from Christ, moral theologians can see that people need to be liberated and healed, not condemned, Pope Francis said.
Published in Faith
February 6, 2019

Jesuit Father Arrupe's sainthood cause officially opens

St. Teresa of Kolkata is pictured in 1982 with Jesuit Father Pedro Arrupe in Rome. The sainthood cause for Father Arrupe was formally opened in Rome at the Basilica of St. John Lateran Feb. 5, 2019, the 28th anniversary of his death. He was superior general of the Jesuits from 1965 to 1983.
ROME – The sainthood cause of Jesuit Father Pedro Arrupe was formally opened in Rome at the Basilica of St. John Lateran Feb. 5, the 28th anniversary of Father Arrupe's death.
Published in Faith
January 14, 2019

Fount of confusion: Rome mayor says Caritas will still get Trevi Fountain coins for the poor

Tourists stand at Rome's Trevi Fountain Aug. 2, 2017.
ROME – After weeks of confusion and consternation, Rome's mayor told the Vatican newspaper that Rome Caritas would benefit not only from the coins tourists throw in the Trevi Fountain, but from coins tossed in any of the city's historic water features.
Published in International
January 14, 2019

Rome government makes a wish: Trevi Fountain coins will no longer go to the poor

People gather in front of the landmark Trevi Fountain after its 2015 restoration in Rome. While millions of tourists throw a coin over their shoulder into the fountain hoping to return to Rome one day, the money scooped out of the fountain each week offers more concrete hope to the city's poor.
ROME – Most of the tourists who have tossed coins over their shoulder into Rome's Trevi Fountain over the past 20 years probably did not know that they were helping the city's poor.
Published in International
December 4, 2018

Papal Lamborghini up for raffle; winner gets trip to Rome

Pope Francis autographs a Lamborghini Huracan coupe presented by representatives of the Italian automaker at the Vatican in this 2017 file photo. The custom-built 2018 Lamborghini is back on the block, this time with an online fundraising platform, not at an elite European auction house.
VATICAN – A custom-built 2018 Lamborghini Huracan coupe autographed by Pope Francis is back on the block, but, this time with an online fundraising platform, not at an elite European auction house.
Published in International
May 11, 2018

Fr. Raymond J. De Souza: Ave Verum stirs the soul and memories of Rome

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, 1819.

A former student sent me a notice that caught my attention, for both artistic and pious reasons. The Cantata Singers of Ottawa will be at St. Joseph’s Church later this month where the entire program will consist of settings of the brief Eucharistic and Marian hymn, Ave Verum, including those of Lassus, Byrd, Mozart, Elgar, Liszt, Saint-Saëns and Poulenc. 

Published in Fr. Raymond de Souza
April 4, 2018

Seminarian who carried cross at Pope's Easter Mass dies in Rome

Legionaries of Christ Brother Anthony Freeman, 29, a U.S. seminarian from Houston studying in Rome, was found dead in his room April 2. Italian authorities are investigating the death. The "millennial" seminarian was very active in evangelization efforts on social media. He is pictured is this October 2017 photo.
ROME – Friends and fans called him a "gentle giant," a faithful "prayer warrior" and a Clark Kent whose superman power was helping people grow in holiness and faith.
Published in International
September 19, 2017

Salesian priest recounts harrowing tale of his capture, liberation

Salesian Father Tom Uzhunnalil, who was released from captivity Sept. 12, greets journalists as he arrives for a news conference in Rome Sept. 16. Father Uzhunnalil was abducted during an attack on a charity care home in Yemen in March 2016 and imprisoned for 18 months.

ROME – Salesian Father Tom Uzhunnalil was sitting in a room in an unknown location -- one of several he had been relocated to during his 18-month imprisonment -- when he received some unexpected news.

Published in International
September 18, 2017

Pope praises Rome's first interreligious half-marathon

Pilgrims hold a large Colombian flag as Pope Francis leads the Angelus in St. Peter's Square Sept. 17 at the Vatican.

VATICAN CITY – After thousands of runners completed the first ever "multireligious" half-marathon in Rome, Pope Francis praised the initiative, which was sponsored by the Pontifical Council for Culture.

Published in Vatican
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