Pope Francis has named Dominican Sister Helen Alford, dean of the faculty of social sciences at the Angelicum University in Rome, to be president of the Pontifical Academy of Social Sciences.
International News
Tidbits On the Tiber: Other Sights and Sounds from Palm Sunday
While the dominant Vatican headline yesterday was Pope Francis’ triumphant return to form in the Palm Sunday liturgy after three days in Rome’s Gemelli Hospital for bronchitis, other tidbits, mostly in Sunday’s Italian press, have sort of flown below the radar.
One Day After Leaving Hospital, Pope Leads Palm Sunday Mass
Despite being discharged from the hospital just a day earlier, Pope Francis presided over an outdoor Palm Sunday Mass in a brisk St. Peter’s Square, telling believers to embrace those who feel abandoned as Jesus did on the cross.
As Pope Leaves Hospital, He Comforts Couple, Jokes With Reporters
“I’m still alive,” Pope Francis joked to reporters who asked how he was doing as he left Rome’s Gemelli hospital April 1.
Pope Visits Pediatric Oncology Ward, Baptizes Infant
Pope Francis used his third day at Rome’s Gemelli hospital to visit children hospitalized in the oncology ward and to confer the sacrament of baptism on a tiny infant named Miguel Angel.
Bishops, Indigenous Catholics Welcome Vatican Condemnation of ‘Doctrine of Discovery,’ But Say ‘More Work to Be Done’
Indigenous Catholics, along with U.S. and Canadian bishops, are welcoming the Vatican’s repudiation of a legal and political doctrine by which European colonial powers and North American governments historically seized lands from Indigenous peoples — while stressing there is more work to be done in healing Catholic-Indigenous relations.
Hate Crimes Targeting Religions on Rise in Canada; Crimes Against Catholics Increase 260%
In 2021, Canadian police services received 3,360 statements related to hate crimes, a 27% increase compared to 2020, with a 260% growth against Catholics, according to a new study by Statistics Canada. In 2020, 2,646 hate crimes had been reported to police.
Six Suspects to be Charged in Deadly Mexico Migrant Center Blaze
After a federal investigation, a Mexican court issued arrest warrants for six people on March 30 for their connection to a fire that killed at least 40 migrants at an immigration detention center in the border city Ciudad Juárez.
After Whirlwind Hospital Stay, Pope Francis To Be Discharged Saturday
The Vatican announced on Friday, March 31, that after spending two days in the hospital, and given his most recent test results, Pope Francis is doing well and is expected to return to the Vatican in time for Holy Week.
Pope Responding to Treatment for Bronchitis, Vatican Says
At the end of Pope Francis’ first full day in Rome’s Gemelli Hospital, where he is being treated for bronchitis, the Vatican said he is doing well and is responding to treatment, and spent his afternoon resting and in prayer.