Tag Archives: VATICAN

Vatican City, Holy See | AFP | Pope Francis said Wednesday he was “very worried” by escalating violence in the Middle East after 60 Gazans were shot dead by Israeli troops while protesting the US embassy’s move to Jerusalem. “I am very worried about the escalation of tensions in the …

Vatican City, Holy See | AFP | Three victims of a Chilean paedophile priest on Wednesday demanded the Catholic Church force tougher sanctions on complicit cardinals after meeting Pope Francis. The calls by Juan Carlos Cruz, James Hamilton and Jose Andres Murillo come a day after Australian authorities ordered the …

Melbourne, Australia | AFP | From country priest to trusted top Vatican aide, Australia’s most senior Catholic cleric George Pell has seen his reputation plagued in the twilight of his career by controversy swirling around a 1970s paedophile scandal in the former gold rush town of Ballarat. To his admirers, …

Vatican City, Holy See | AFP | Pope Francis on Sunday praised North and South Korean leaders for their “brave commitment” to peace after they agreed to work towards the denuclearisation of the Korean peninsula. The pontiff hailed the “positive outcome” of their historic summit in Seoul on Friday, when Kim …

London, United Kingdom | AFP | Pope Francis has stepped in to the case of a seriously ill British toddler who is being kept alive on a ventilator. Alfie Evans, who is 22 months old, has a rare degenerative neurological condition which has not been definitively diagnosed. His parents, Tom Evans …

po Vatican City, Holy See | AFP | Pope Francis celebrated Easter mass under tight security and a sunny sky on Sunday in front of tens of thousands of pilgrims gathered in a flower-bedecked St Peter’s Square. Under a longstanding tradition, the Netherlands donated some 50,000 tulips, daffodils, roses and …

Rome, Italy | AFP | Pope Francis washed prisoners’ feet at a Rome jail on Thursday, including two Muslims, an Orthodox Christian and a Buddhist, once again choosing to celebrate Holy Thursday among Italy’s incarcerated. “Everyone always has the opportunity to change life and one cannot judge,” said Francis to …

Ottawa, Canada | AFP | Pope Francis has declined to apologize for the abuse of indigenous Canadians at church-run boarding schools, drawing a polite rebuke Wednesday from Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. In an open letter, the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops wrote: “After carefully considering the request and extensive dialogue with …

Vatican City, Holy See | AFP | Pope Francis on Sunday urged young people not to allow themselves to be silenced and to stand up for what they believe in, a day after more than a million people in the United States took part in student-led protests demanding tighter gun control. …

Vatican City, Holy See | AFP | Pope Francis on Friday met representatives of the South Sudan Council of Churches and discussed how to promote peace in a country ravaged by a bloody four-year civil war. “The Pope holds the suffering people of South Sudan in his heart,” said Council Secretary …