This past week the Vatican’s Secretary of State, Italian Cardinal Pietro Parolin, quietly led his own “peace mission” to the Caucasus nations of Armenia and Azerbaijan, which have long been engaged in violent conflict, to promote peace talks.
International News
Special Forces, Weapons Embargo Needed to Rescue Haiti, Says Leading Haitian-American Priest
A leading Haitian-American pastor based in the U.S. said he agrees with a U.N. specialist that international special forces along with a weapons embargo are needed to stop Haiti’s further slide as a failed state.
Father James Martin Chosen by Pope to Participate in Synod at Vatican
Jesuit Father James Martin, editor at large of America magazine and founder of an outreach ministry to LGBTQ+ Catholics, has been chosen by Pope Francis to take part in the upcoming Synod of Bishops on Synodality at the Vatican this October.
Pope Names 21 New Cardinals, Including an American and His Envoy to the U.S.
Pope Francis announced Sunday that he will hold a consistory for the creation of 21 new cardinals at the end of September, with the recipients including several key allies and two figures of special interest to the United States.
New Vatican Doctrine Czar Says He’s ‘Not Qualified’ to Handle Abuse Cases
Argentine Archbishop Víctor Manuel Fernández, Pope Francis’ pick as the new head of the Vatican’s powerful Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith, has said that he originally declined the position in part because he feels incompetent in handling the clerical abuse crisis.
In Naming New Prefect, Pope Asks Doctrine Office to Promote Evangelization
Pope Francis appointed his longtime theological adviser and fellow countryman Archbishop Víctor Manuel Fernández of La Plata, Argentina, to lead the Vatican’s doctrinal office, urging him in a public letter to expand the office’s focus beyond its reputation as a watchdog pursuing possible doctrinal errors and to promote the understanding and transmission of the faith.
Pope’s Peace Envoy Meets Pro-Putin Russian Orthodox Leader
Continuing his peace mission on behalf of Pope Francis amid the war in Ukraine, Italian Cardinal Matteo Zuppi met Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and other leaders of the Russian Orthodox Church Thursday, just days after the Orthodox prelates stood uniformly behind Russian President Vladimir Putin during a short-lived insurrection by Wagner Group mercenaries.
Posing As Priest, Reporter Is Spat At Many Times, Highlighting Increasing Anti-Christian Sentiment In Holy Land
A local Israeli reporter went undercover as a priest and was spat at several times while walking the streets of Jerusalem, Haaretz, the Israeli daily, reported.
Pope’s Envoy To Travel To Moscow On Peace Mission
Italian Cardinal Matteo Zuppi will go to Moscow on the second leg of a peace mission on behalf of Pope Francis, the Vatican said.
Nigerian Clergy Decry Violent Attacks by Muslims
Bishop Wilfred Anagbe, during a recent stop in Brooklyn, said massacres by Fulani herdsmen have continued in Nigeria, even as a new president has taken office.