By CNA Staff Vatican City, Feb 11, 2022 / 13:00 pm The number of Catholics worldwide increased by an estimated 16 million in 2020 to 1.36 billion, according to statistics released on Friday by the Vatican. The rise was in line with global population growth in the year that the coronavirus …

by Courtney Mares Vatican City, Jan 18, 2022 / 07:05 am Cardinal Pietro Parolin and Archbishop Edgar Peña Parra have tested positive for COVID-19, the Holy See press office confirmed on Tuesday. Parolin, the Vatican Secretary of State, has “very mild” symptoms, while his Venezuelan substitute, Peña Parra, is asymptomatic, …

by CNA Staff Vatican City, Jan 10, 2022 / 04:20 am Pope Francis lamented “cancel culture” in an address to diplomats at the Vatican on Monday. Delivering his annual “state of the world” address on Jan. 10, the pope said that international organizations were increasingly pursuing “divisive” agendas at odds with the …

by Andrea Gagliarducci Rome Newsroom, Dec 17, 2021 / 15:44 pm Cardinal Peter Turkson’s tenure as prefect of the Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development may be coming to an end. Various Vatican sources told CNA that a recent report by a traditionalist blog claiming that Turkson was set to resign is …

by Hannah Brockhaus Vatican City, Dec 18, 2021 / 04:36 am The Vatican issued Saturday further strict guidelines on the celebration of the Traditional Latin Mass, in response to questions about the motu proprio Traditionis custodes. The explanatory document, which bans confirmations and ordinations according to pre-Vatican II Roman Missals, was published …

by Matt Hadro Washington D.C., Oct 29, 2021 / 10:07 am According to multiple news reports, President Joe Biden on Friday said that Pope Francis told him to “keep receiving Communion.” President Biden met with the pope in person for 75 minutes on Friday. According to the White House pool …

by CNA Staff Vatican City, Oct 25, 2021 / 06:30 am Pope Francis on Monday appointed the economist Jeffrey Sachs to the Pontifical Academy of Social Sciences. The Holy See press office said on Oct. 25 that the pope had named Sachs as an “ordinary member” of the academy founded …

By Matt Hadro Washington D.C., Oct 14, 2021 / 09:02 am The White House has confirmed that President Joe Biden and his wife Jill will meet with Pope Francis on Oct. 29 at the Vatican. According to a Thursday statement by White House press secretary Jen Psaki, the Bidens will …

by CNA Staff Vatican City, Oct 9, 2021 / 05:20 am Pope Francis met with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) on Saturday. At the time of publication, the Vatican had released no information about what the pope and Pelosi discussed, in line with its usual custom for papal meetings with …

by Kevin J. Jones Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Oct 8, 2021 / 15:04 pm Former U.S. Sen. Joe Donnelly of Indiana is President Joe Biden’s nominee for U.S. Ambassador to the Holy See, the White House announced on Friday. Donnelly is a Catholic and a former professor at the University of …