An estimated 45,000 pilgrims from around the world gathered in St. Peter’s Square at the beginning of the canonization Mass, and tens of thousands more arrived in time for the recitation of the “Regina Coeli” prayer afterward, the Vatican said.
Pope Francis
Immigration Reform Cannot be Delayed, Pope Francis Says in Message
Countries around the world must get serious about reforming their immigration policies to respect the rights of migrants and refugees and establish orderly procedures for welcoming newcomers, Pope Francis said.
Ukraine War Cuts Global Food Exports, Makes Lebanon Unstable
A hunger crisis was already underway because of the 2020 explosion in the Port of Beirut, but now it is worse because the war in Ukraine has curtailed grain exports to Lebanon.
Wives of Soldiers in Mariupol ask Pope Francis to Help Save Their Husbands
The young wife of the commander of the Ukrainian battalion still holed up in a steel plant in Mariupol had what she described as a “heart raising” encounter with Pope Francis.
Pope Francis’ Knee Problems Cast Doubt on Foreign Trips This Summer
A Lebanese government official said Pope Francis’ visit to the country next month, which had never been formally announced by the Vatican, was being postponed due to the pontiff’s health, casting doubt on Pope Francis’ ambitious summer travel plans.
Cardinal Reaffirms Pope’s Willingness to Visit Moscow to Try to Stop War
Pope Francis’ secretary of state reaffirmed the pope’s offer to go to Moscow personally to try to convince President Vladimir Putin to stop his war on Ukraine but said the Kremlin had yet to respond.
Vatican Releases Pope’s Message for World Day of Prayer for Vocations
The Christian vocation is for all members of the church to work together and show that one human family united in love is not a utopia but is the reason God created humanity, Pope Francis said.
Pope Agrees to Treat Painful Knee With Therapeutic Injections
Pope Francis will have therapeutic injections to try to alleviate the pain in his right knee, he told an Italian newspaper.
Pope Francis Says He Reached Out to Putin About Meeting in Moscow to Make Case For Peace
In an interview with the Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera, Pope Francis said he has reached out to Russian President Vladimir Putin about meeting him in Moscow, warned Russian Patriarch Kirill against becoming an “altar boy” for the Kremlin, and compared the ongoing war in Ukraine to Rwanda’s genocide.
Central Asian Bishops’ Conference Elects First President
The newly created Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Central Asia elected Spanish-born Bishop José Luis Mumbiela Sierra of the Diocese of the Holy Trinity in Almaty, Kazakhstan, as its first president.