In his ongoing campaign against the commercialization of the Christian feast of the Nativity, Pope Francis is calling on Christians to liberate Christmas, saying it has been taken “hostage” by worldliness.
The Italian media are in an uproar over an alleged financial scandal involving Honduran Cardinal Oscar Maradiaga, a close friend and chief adviser to Pope Francis, who is accused of receiving over $40,000/month stipend while preaching a “poor church for the poor.”
There is no worse “curse” than not being able to support one’s family through hard work, Pope Francis told Vatican employees Thursday, insisting that employment safeguards the dignity of the person.
Pope Francis has once again taken advantage of his annual address to members of the Roman Curia to denounce Vatican officials who fail to fall in line with his ideas of reform for the Catholic Church.
In his homily at Tuesday morning Mass, Pope Francis reflected on the blessing of fertility and the dangers of going down the path of self-imposed barrenness as some modern nations have done.
Pope Francis has joined in the debate over the secularization of Christmas, insisting that if Jesus Christ is removed from the holidays, Christmas becomes just an empty feast.
In a powerful address to journalists over the weekend, Pope Francis defended the principle of freedom of the press, while calling on journalists to avoid the “sins” of fake news and sensationalism.
Leaders of the World Evangelical Alliance (WEA) met with Pope Francis in the Vatican on Thursday to discuss closer cooperation with the Catholic Church, particularly regarding issues of religious freedom and Christian persecution around the world.
In one of the least likely stories of all time, Facebook has vetoed a photo of the Vatican’s yearly Nativity scene, referencing its policy against “sexually suggestive or provocative” images.
The bishop of Des Moines, Iowa, is urging congress to pass the DREAM Act, insisting that the U.S. immigration system is “unjust.”
Contents: Protests fizzle 3 days after Trump’s Jerusalem announcement was universally condemned; Trump’s proclamation hardens splits among Arab countries
On Sunday the Vatican issued a communiqué appealing for cooperation with groups like the Arab League that are concerned with the recent decision by the United States to recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel.
Pope Francis has once again underscored the perils of manmade “climate change,” urging nations to adopt practical measures to counteract its effects.
Pope Francis has proposed changing the text of the Lord’s Prayer, saying the translation into different modern languages is flawed because it suggests that God could be the source of temptation.
In its major story on the U.S. decision to move its embassy in Israel to Jerusalem, the Vatican’s newspaper described the measure as igniting a powder keg in the region.
In a special appeal Wednesday, Pope Francis called for respect for the “status quo” in Jerusalem, in the wake of news that the United States will transfer its embassy in Israel to the Holy City.
Tens of thousands of Irish Catholic assembled across the island for one of the largest religious events in the nation’s recent history, praying for the rosary for the conservation of the Catholic faith and to keep the country pro-life.
Pope Francis has laid into modern cultural trends, especially the casual acceptance of abortion and the persecution of the Christian faithful, calling the present globalist mentality “a perverse new state of affairs.”
The U.S. State Department has issued a terror warning for Americans abroad after the Islamic State threatened to attack the Vatican with “Christmas Blood” this December.
In a speech to highway, rail and traffic police, Pope Francis enumerated a list of new traffic sins, while praising the work of those dedicated to keeping the roads safe.
Pope Francis praised his predecessor Pope Benedict XVI over the weekend, saying that his teaching continues to live on in the Church as a precious treasure.
Humanity is currently experiencing a “climate emergency,” Pope Francis said, while decrying denial of human-induced climate change as a perverse attitude that endangers all.
The Lamborghini auto company has donated a special edition of its Huracan sports car to Pope Francis so he can auction the race car off for charity.
The pro-abortion New York Times has denounced Italy’s failure to oblige its doctors to perform abortions even when such an intervention goes against their conscience as healers.
Pope Francis has gone further than any of his predecessors in denouncing the arms race, saying that not only the use or massive stockpiling of nuclear arms, but their very possession is worthy of condemnation.
Pope Francis has issued his personal version of “Thank you for not smoking,” announcing a ban on the sale of cigarettes in the Vatican to go into effect in 2018.
Pope Francis urged the faithful—including bishops and priests—to put away their cell phones during Mass and to focus on what is going on.
Pope Francis has sent a telegram of condolences to the families and victims of the San Antonio slaughter, expressing his grief over the “senseless violence.”
Pope Francis denounced “negative reactions” to the phenomenon of mass migration Saturday, suggesting that more formation of conscience is needed to combat an anti-immigration mentality.
Pope Francis has reportedly expressed openness to discussing the possibility of ordaining married men to the priesthood in order to offset a priest shortage in Brazil.
On Thursday, Pope Francis celebrated Mass at an American military cemetery outside Rome on the day that Catholics set aside to pray for all the faithful departed.
The former doctrinal chief of the U.S. Bishops Conference (USCCB) has written a forceful letter to Pope Francis, criticizing the pontiff’s “intentionally ambiguous” teaching, derision of conservatives and resentfulness of constructive criticism.
Pope Francis expressed his “deep sorrow” for Tuesday’s Islamist terror attack in New York, as well as for other recent jihadist attacks in Somalia and Afghanistan, in a heartfelt plea Wednesday.
Reflecting on the contribution of Christianity to Europe’s future, Pope Francis said that as Saint Benedict did in the sixth century, today’s Christians “are called to revitalize Europe and to revive its conscience.” Citing the ancient Letter to Diognetus, the
In launching an international Vatican conference on the future of Europe on Friday, German Cardinal Reinhard Marx listed off his idea of the three greatest challenges facing Europe, the first of which was “climate change.”
Pope Francis has reaffirmed the reality of heaven as an eternal reward of life with God, rather than a fanciful myth or a children’s story.
The Pontifical Academy of Sciences has invited California governor Jerry Brown to deliver a keynote address in their upcoming meeting on climate change to be held in the Vatican.
Vatican Cardinal Robert Sarah has praised Poland for standing up to the European Union’s “immigration logic” and fighting to preserve its own cultural identity but not allowing the nation to be overrun with migrants.
Even as nations around the world are quietly backing away from the Paris Climate Accord, Pope Francis has called for a prompt and effective response to the “threat posed by climate change” in a message to a Rome summit on water and climate.
In an infrequent exercise of his diplomatic veto, Pope Francis has reportedly rejected the recently named Lebanese Ambassador to the Holy See, allegedly on the grounds that he is a member of the Masonic Lodge.
