In a video message two years ago marking the 35th anniversary of the Jesuit Refugee Service welcome center in Rome, Pope Francis spoke directly to refugees and said “Each one of you refugees who knock on our doors has the face of God and is the body of Christ.”
Five years into his papacy, Pope Francis continues to enjoy enviously high polling numbers of public support, with new survey results showing that over 84 percent of American Catholics approve of him.
Nearly 500 British priests have signed a statement in support of the papal encyclical that forbade married couples from using contraception.
A new Vatican document cautions against the dangers of highly competitive children’s sports, political and economic pressures on athletes to win “at all costs” and the unsportsmanlike or violent behavior of fans.
Spain’s newest cardinal has said his appointment confirms the pope’s determination to keep religious orders center stage in the Church’s life and mission.
Talks between the leaders of the U.S. and North Korea are “truly historic” and bring hope for the start of a new era of peace, said Pope Francis’ ambassador to Korea.
The issue of LGBT families has dogged the ninth World Meeting of Families since it was revealed that an image of a gay couple was edited for a preparatory booklet, and Los Angeles Auxiliary Bishop David G. O’Connell’s comments on gay families were deleted from a video.
After an in-depth Vatican-led investigation into clerical sexual abuse and cover-ups, Pope Francis accepted the resignation of 61-year-old Bishop Juan Barros of Osorno, Chile, and two other Chilean bishops June 11.
Pope Francis has appointed the first layperson to head Rome’s Pontifical Lateran University.
Pope Francis has asked the Catholic bishops’ conference of Germany not to publish nationwide guidelines for allowing Protestants married to Catholics to receive Communion at Mass, but to continue having diocesan bishops judge specific situations.
