Latest Roman Catholicism News
Vatican closes embassy in Nicaragua after Ortega's crackdown
VATICAN CITY (AP) — The Vatican said Saturday it had closed its embassy in Nicaragua after the country's government proposed suspending diplomatic relations, the latest episode in a yearslong crackdown on the Catholic Church by the administration of Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega. ...
10 iconic moments in Pope Francis' first 10 years as pontiff
VATICAN CITY (AP) — Pope Francis marks the 10th anniversary of his election as pope on Monday. During that decade, several historic occasions, as well as several unplanned events, helped define the contours and priorities of history's first Latin American pontiff. Visits with refugees in Italy...
Argentina's initial fervor for Pope Francis has faded
BUENOS AIRES, Argentina (AP) — When Jorge Bergoglio of Argentina became Pope Francis, much of his home country celebrated as if it had just won a soccer World Cup championship. A decade later, the first Latin American leader of the Catholic Church generates divided opinions and much less fervor....
German church reform assembly calls for same-sex blessings
BERLIN (AP) — A meeting between Germany’s Catholic bishops and lay representatives agreed Friday to call for the church to approve blessings of same-sex unions. The three-day gathering, which is part of the “Synodal Path” launched in 2019 in response to the sex abuse crisis...
John Paul abuse claims trigger angry reactions in Poland
WARSAW, Poland (AP) — Fallout from a TV report alleging that St. John Paul II covered up clergy sex abuse cases escalated Thursday, with Poland’s Catholic Church and lawmakers defending him as one of the greatest Poles ever and the government “inviting” the U.S. ambassador for talks. ...
Contentious German church reform assembly opens last meeting
BERLIN (AP) — Germany’s Catholic bishops and lay representatives gathered on Thursday for the final meeting of a potentially groundbreaking reform assembly that has been marked by tensions between liberalizers and conservatives and is drawing increasingly open opposition from the Vatican. ...
Polish TV report: John Paul II knew of abuse as archbishop
WARSAW, Poland (AP) — St. John Paul II knew about sexual abuse of children by priests under his authority and sought to conceal it when he was an archbishop in his native Poland, a television news report has alleged. In a story that aired late Monday, Polish channel TVN24 named...
Pope renews cabinet of cardinal advisers, adds new members
ROME (AP) — Pope Francis has renewed his cabinet of cardinal advisers from around the world, naming a handful of new members Tuesday and reconfirming others to help him run the Catholic Church. Francis instituted the Council of Cardinals one month into his papacy, on April 13,...
Pope nationalizes Vatican assets, property in new reform
ROME (AP) — Pope Francis has essentially nationalized all assets and property owned by Vatican departments and affiliated institutions, declaring them to be sovereign patrimony owned by the Holy See and not any individual or office. The action outlined in a new law published...
Funerals held for victims of Michigan State campus attack
GROSSE POINTE FARMS, Mich. (AP) — The first funerals were held Saturday for students who were killed in this week's mass shooting at Michigan State University. Mourners in the Detroit suburb of Grosse Pointe Farms filed into St. Paul on the Lake Catholic Church to remember...
