By Kristina Millare Rome Newsroom, Apr 13, 2025 / 10:50 am Marking another in a series of recent surprise public appearances, Pope Francis on Sunday briefly greeted thousands of pilgrims gathered in St. Peter’s Square to celebrate Palm Sunday. “Happy Palm Sunday and beginning of Holy Week!” the Holy Father said with some …

By Kristina Millare Vatican City, Mar 31, 2025 / 13:17 pm Pope Francis has advanced five people’s paths to sainthood after approving decrees promulgated by the Vatican’s Dicastery for the Causes of Saints on March 28. Blessed Peter To Rot of Papua New Guinea, Blessed Ignatius Shoukrallah Maloyan of Turkey, and …

By Kristina Millare Vatican City, Mar 12, 2025 / 13:20 pm Cardinal Kurt Koch, prefect of the Vatican’s Dicastery for Promoting Christian Unity, reflected Tuesday on the great challenge of illness and suffering for Pope Francis as he approaches a month’s hospital stay amid a series of health crises. Before leading …

By Kristina Millare Rome Newsroom, Mar 2, 2025 / 06:00 am Though many Catholics may associate the liturgical season of Lent more with the practice of fasting and abstaining from food, many families around the world use the 40-day season to prepare specific homemade delicacies to remind them of the life …

By Kristina Millare Vatican City, Feb 28, 2025 / 13:20 pm Pope Francis on Friday urged liturgists to accompany bishops and the faithful communities of their dioceses with humility and discretion. In a Feb. 28 message sent from Gemelli Hospital to liturgy professors and students of the Anselmianum — a pontifical …

By Kristina Millare Vatican City, Dec 25, 2024 / 12:54 pm Pope Francis on Christmas Day delivered the traditional Urbi et Orbi address and blessing in Vatican City, inviting all individuals and nations to “silence the sound of arms and overcome divisions.” Delivering his Christmas Day message overlooking crowds of thousands …

By Kristina Millare Vatican City, Dec 20, 2024 / 14:35 pm Pope Francis has appointed five new auxiliary bishops for the Archdiocese of Chicago and assigned each bishop-elect a titular see in the Middle East and North Africa region, Cardinal Christophe Pierre, apostolic nuncio to the United States, announced Dec. 20. …

By Kristina Millare Vatican City, Oct 11, 2024 / 10:25 am Pope Francis met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in a private audience at the Vatican’s Apostolic Palace on Friday morning, assuring the political leader of his and the universal Church’s continuous prayers for the people of Ukraine. The pope gifted …

By Kristina Millare Vatican City, Jul 25, 2024 / 15:30 pm Pope Francis on Thursday appointed Father Kevin Kenney as auxiliary bishop of the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis. The bishop-elect, born and raised in Minneapolis, currently serves as parish priest of St. Olaf Parish as well as administrator of …

By Kristina Millare Vatican City, Jul 26, 2024 / 17:26 pm Pope Francis and Athletica Vaticana, the official Holy See sports association, have invited all athletes participating in the 2024 Olympic Games to harness the “great social power of sport” to unite people and be witnesses of peace, particularly during these …