VATICAN— The recently concluded 2023 Synod of Bishops is proposing major changes in Church decision-making processes and the way dioceses and parishes are governed. The word “co-responsibility” is mentioned 16 times in the synthesis report of the first session of the “Synod on Synodality,” convoked by...
Pope Francis is constantly following what is happening in Gaza, reaching out to the small Christian community in the Strip by telephone. Parish priest Father Gabriel Romanelli told Vatican News about two phone calls he has received from the Pope since Saturday. Fr. Romanelli is currently in...
“Let us pray for peace, in the tormented Ukraine and in all lands wounded by war,” Pope Francis said to pilgrims and believers following the Sunday Angelus prayer as he recalled the fact that October that “begins today” is the month of the Rosary and...
During a press conference on Tuesday, the Director of the Holy See Press Office, Matteo Bruni, outlined Pope Francis’ pilgrimage to Mongolia, from 31 August to 4 September. This will be the Holy Father’s 43rd Apostolic Journey and the 61st country he will have visited...
Religious freedom has recently been violated in countries with more than half of the world's population, according to a report by the Pontifical Foundation Aid to the Church in Need International (Kirche in Not), which for years has been studying the problem of religious freedom...
After months of being a service volunteer for the World Youth Day in Lisbon, a former campus minister got the surprise of her lifetime: a lunch with Pope Francis. Audrey Abatol has been a fan of Pope John Paul II. Growing up, she has always been...
According to an international survey, 96% of young people over the age of 18 who are attending World Youth Day (WYD) in Lisbon, Portugal, think these gatherings contribute a lot or quite a bit “to spreading faith in Jesus Christ.” To the same extent, the participants...
The young people attending this year's Vatican summer camp, which brings together children of Vatican employees, asked Pope Francis all sorts of questions during their meeting with him on Tuesday morning in the Paul VI Audience Hall. Among the many questions, young Edoardo asked, "what message...
Pope Francis has named Dominican Father Steven Maekawa, a former active duty military chaplain, as the next bishop of Fairbanks, Alaska. The Vatican announced the appointment on July 11. Maekawa will take on the role of leading a diocese that spans more than 400,000 square miles,...
Lisbon, Portugal -- More than 600,000 people have started the registration process. Nearly 3 million lunches and dinners have been ordered. Ten thousand priestly vestments are being made. And at least 7,000 host families have volunteered to open their homes to pilgrims. These are among the latest statistics...