Pope Francis named 15 cardinal electors “from 14 nations of every continent, showing the inseparable link between the church of Rome and the particular churches present in the world.”
Vatican
Pope Likely to Visit New York
Asked if Pope Francis would visit the United Nations in New York in September, the Vatican secretary of state replied: “I think so, but no official announcement has been done. But everybody is speaking of that.”
Local Nuns Glad Vatican Investigation Is Finished
Six years after the Vatican first started its investigation into U.S. nuns who participate in apostolic ministries, it released an official response during a press conference Dec. 16. Cardinal João Bráz de Aviz prefect of the Vatican Congregation for Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life held a press conference to release the […]
Vatican Played Key Role in Mending US-Cuban Relations
By Patricia Zapor WASHINGTON (CNS) – A not-insignificant part of the diplomatic coup pulled off by the White House and Cuban leaders Dec. 17 was that hardly anyone knew they had been working toward a reset in relations between the two neighbors and long-time antagonists. That the two nations had been negotiating in secret for […]
Pope Warns Curia on ‘Spiritual Alzheimer’s’
By Francis X. Rocca VATICAN CITY (CNS) – Pope Francis’ Christmas greeting to the Vatican bureaucracy this year was an extended warning against a host of spiritual ills to which he said Vatican officials are prone, including “spiritual Alzheimer’s,” “existential schizophrenia,” publicity-seeking, the “terrorism of gossip” and even a poor sense of humor. The pope […]
Brooklyn Hosts New Vatican Envoy to UN
Accepting Bishop Nicholas DiMarzio’s invitation, the recently named Apostolic Nuncio to the U.N. visited the Brooklyn Diocese and celebrated Mass Dec. 17 at the Co-Cathedral of St. Joseph, Prospect Heights. Bishop DiMarzio said he and the diocese can learn much from Archbishop Bernardito Cleopas Auza, who was assigned as Pope Francis’ representative to the U.N. […]
Vatican Thanks U.S. Nuns, Calls for a New Dialogue
By Cindy Wooden VATICAN CITY (CNS) – A massive, detailed Vatican-ordered investigation of U.S. communities of women religious ended with a call to the women themselves to continue discerning how best to live the Gospel in fidelity to their orders’ founding ideals while facing steeply declining numbers and a rapidly aging membership. Although initially seen […]
Clash of Straw Men
Two recent speeches by senior Vatican officials whose responsibilities involve wrestling with world politics suggest that some default positions need a reset in the Holy See.
Obama Will Meet Pope at the Vatican
by Cindy Wooden VATICAN CITY (CNS) – Pope Francis will meet with U.S. President Barack Obama at the Vatican March 27, the White House announced and the Vatican confirmed. The spring meeting would be Obama’s second visit to the Vatican as president, but his first with Pope Francis, who was elected March 13, 2013. The […]
Outgoing Vatican Secretary Stresses Continuity
VATICAN CITY (CNS) – Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone, who as Vatican secretary of state drew rising criticism for failures of the Vatican bureaucracy he oversaw, stepped down Oct. 15 with a speech praising the pontificate of retired Pope Benedict XVI and stressing its continuity with that of Pope Francis. The cardinal made his remarks at a […]