FAITH/STORIES

Pope Francis walks from the papal plane as he arrives at an airfield during a 2015 foreign trip.

In Iraq, Pope Francis hopes to encourage Christians, build bridges to Muslims

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AMMAN, Jordan -- On his historic visit to Iraq in March, Pope Francis hopes to encourage his Christian flock, badly bruised by sectarian conflict and brutal Islamic State attacks, while building further bridges to Muslims by extending fraternal peace.

Xaviere Missionary Sister Nathalie Becquart attends a news conference at the Vatican in this Oct. 9, 2018, file photo. Last May Sister Becquart was one of six consultants appointed by Pope Francis to the general secretariat of the Synod of Bishops. Five of those appointed were women, and it was the first time women had served in that role.

Pope Francis gives a woman a vote in next synod of bishops

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VATICAN CITY -- Xaviere Missionary Sister Nathalie Becquart will not be the first woman undersecretary of a major Vatican office, but she will be the first woman with a right to vote at a meeting of the Synod of Bishops.

Fr. Pilmaiken Lezano, new spiritual advisor to Calgary’s CWL.

Priest brings CWL a youthful perspective

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It is safe to assume Fr. Pilmaiken Lezano became theologically and philosophically knowledgeable about the concept of Divine Providence during his years of study at St. Joseph’s Seminary in Edmonton from 2012-2015.

Pope Francis greets Cardinal Louis Sako, the Baghdad-based patriarch of the Chaldean Catholic Church, in Tbilisi, Georgia, in this Sept. 30, 2016, file photo. Sako said the Church in Iraq is working with the government to prepare for Pope Francis’ planned March 5-8 visit to Iraq.

Pope Francis still plans to visit Iraq

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VATICAN CITY -- Pope Francis said that unless there is a serious new wave of COVID-19 infections in Iraq, he has every intention of visiting the country in early March.

A visitor wears a mask for protection from the coronavirus while touring the Vatican Museums in this Feb. 29, 2020, file photo.

Vatican Museums reopen to the public

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VATICAN CITY -- As coronavirus restrictions eased slightly in most parts of Italy Feb. 1, the Vatican Museums reopened to the public after a three-month closure.

February 3, 2021
Pope Francis leads his general audience in the library of the Apostolic Palace at the Vatican Feb. 3, 2021.

Christianity without liturgy is absent of Christ, Pope Francis says

VATICAN CITY -- The liturgy is not a spectacle to be observed but a prayerful event where Christians encounter Christ's presence in their lives, Pope Francis said.

Pope Francis arrives for an audience with participants in a meeting organized by the Italian bishops' National Catechetical Office, at the Vatican Jan. 30, 2021.

Catechists must share God's love, uphold church teaching, Pope Francis says

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VATICAN CITY -- Religious education must focus on leading people to a personal relationship with Christ and building a community of believers where the talents of each person are valued and where all go out to share the Gospel and serve the poor, Pope Francis said.

Pope Francis leads the Angelus from the Apostolic Palace at the Vatican Jan. 24, 2021.

Love is clearest sign of faith, Pope says in homily for Christian unity

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ROME — Abiding in God's love means nurturing one's relationship with him and with all those whom God loves, Pope Francis wrote in his homily for the conclusion of the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity.

The courtroom is pictured during the trial of Angelo Caloia, former president of the Institute for Works of Religion, at the Vatican Jan. 21, 2021. Caloia, the former director of the so-called Vatican bank, and his lawyer, Gabriele Liuzzo, were found guilty of money laundering and embezzling millions of euros from the sale of Vatican properties. Both received a prison sentence of 8 years and 11 months and ordered to pay a fine of 12,500 euro ($15,200).

Former Vatican bank president sentenced for embezzlement

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VATICAN CITY -- A former president of the Vatican bank and his lawyer were found guilty of money laundering and embezzling millions of euros from property sales.

Homeless people receive the first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine in the atrium of the Paul VI hall at the Vatican Jan. 20, 2021. The Vatican said a first group of around 25 homeless people permanently housed in Vatican-owned care and residence facilities received the vaccine.

Vatican begins vaccinating residents of its homeless shelters

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VATICAN CITY -- As the Vatican health service continued vaccinating Vatican residents and employees against COVID-19, it also began offering the vaccine to homeless people who live in Vatican-owned shelters.

Cardinal Angelo Becciu speaks with journalists during a news conference in Rome Sept. 25, 2020, after he was asked by Pope Francis to resign as prefect of the Congregation for Saints' Causes. The Vatican announced Jan. 18 that it withdrew an arrest and extradition request for Cecilia Marogna, an Italian political analyst, who allegedly was hired as a consultant by Cardinal Becciu, and is now accused of embezzlement.

Vatican revokes arrest warrant against woman linked to finance scandal

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VATICAN CITY -- The Vatican announced that it withdrew an arrest and extradition request for an Italian political analyst, who allegedly was hired as a consultant by Cardinal Angelo Becciu and is now accused of embezzlement.

January 18, 2021
Pope Francis leads the midday recitation of the Angelus Jan. 17, 2021, from the library of the Apostolic Palace at the Vatican.

Every call of God is a call of love, Pope Francis says

VATICAN CITY -- When a person senses God's call, it can be intimidating or frightening, Pope Francis said, but Christians can be sure that the call flows from God's love and that responding to the call will be a means of sharing God's love.

Australian Cardinal George Pell.

Cardinal Pell: Vatican financial reform making progress

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ROME -- While questions remain about dubious financial dealings in the past and about future uncertainties due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Vatican's steady move toward financial transparency is on the right track, said Cardinal George Pell, former prefect of the Vatican Secretariat for the Economy.

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