Latest Pope Francis News
Knights of Malta warn Vatican reforms risk their sovereignty
ROME (AP) — A top leader of the Knights of Malta, an ancient aristocratic Catholic order that provides humanitarian aid around the world, warned the group’s members on Wednesday that the Holy See’s latest proposals to reform the order threaten its internationally recognized status as a...
Pope on prisons: No inmate should ever be deprived of hope
VATICAN CITY (AP) — Pope Francis issued a plea on behalf of prison inmates Wednesday, saying they should never be deprived of hope and always be given the opportunity to redeem themselves. In remarks at his weekly public audience at the Vatican, Francis told the faithful that “we...
Vatican No. 2 and deputy both positive for COVID
VATICAN CITY (AP) — The Vatican secretary of state and his deputy have both tested positive for the coronavirus, Vatican officials said Tuesday. Cardinal Pietro Parolin, who serves as the Vatican's secretary of state and the pope's No. 2, has “very light” symptoms, while...
On Jewish Earth Day, more Jewish groups take climate action
(RNS) — Tu BiShvat, the Jewish new year of the trees, barely registers on most Jewish calendars, except as an occasion to plant trees or eat fruit and nuts. But the one-day holiday, which begins Sunday (Jan. 16), has gotten a boost these past few years as environmentalists have...
Indian court acquits bishop of charge of raping nun
NEW DELHI (AP) — An Indian court on Friday acquitted a Roman Catholic bishop of charges of raping a nun in her rural convent, a case that became a major issue amid allegations of sexual harassment in the church. Sessions Judge G. Gopakumar in a brief order said the bishop was not...
Bad luck: Pope acknowledges he got caught at record store
ROME (AP) — Pope Francis has long lamented that he can't walk around town unnoticed like he used to before becoming pope. But he seems to have nevertheless kept his sense of humor after he was caught on camera making an unannounced visit to a Rome record shop this week. Francis...
Mask rules get tighter in Europe in winter's COVID-19 wave
ROME (AP) — To mask or not to mask is a question Italy settled early in the COVID-19 outbreak with a vigorous “yes." Now the onetime epicenter of the pandemic in Europe hopes even stricter mask rules will help it beat the latest infection surge. Other countries are taking similar...
Polish diocese apologizes for asking if abuse victim is gay
WARSAW, Poland (AP) — A Catholic diocese in Poland apologized on Thursday for having asked a court to determine whether a man who was sexually abused as a child by a priest is gay, and whether the sexual contact may have consequently been pleasurable for him. Following wide...
Pope slips out of Vatican to visit record shop, gets CD
ROME (AP) — Pope Francis grew up listening to the opera on the radio, is a fan of Argentine tango and thinks Mozart “lifts you to God.” But it still came as a something of a shock to see the 85-year-old pontiff coming out of a downtown Rome record shop late Tuesday with a CD in...
New Mexico church official urges nuclear disarmament talks
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — The head of one of the oldest Roman Catholic dioceses in the United States says now is the time to rejuvenate and sustain a global conversation about the need for nuclear disarmament and how to develop ways to avoid a new nuclear arms race. Santa Fe...
