Vatican News

Pope Francis joines the Pontifical Commission for the Protection of Minors in prayer at the Vatican on March 7, 2024.

Vatican publishes first report on Church safeguarding efforts worldwide

Oct 29, 2024

By Courtney Mares

The 50-page report by the Pontifical Commission for the Protection of Minors is the first in an annual series that... Read more

Cardinals outside the Paul VI Hall.

Pope Francis cuts salaries of Vatican cardinals again

Oct 28, 2024

By Walter Sánchez Silva

Pope Francis has decided to cut the salaries of the cardinals working at the Vatican again, a measure that will... Read more

Cardinal Renato Raffaele Martino, who served for 16 years as the top Vatican diplomat to the United Nations and headed up two key pontifical councils in Rome for several years, died Oct. 28, 2024, at age 91.

Cardinal Renato Martino, longtime Vatican diplomat, dies at 91

Oct 28, 2024

By Daniel Payne

Cardinal Renato Raffaele Martino, who served for 16 years as the top Vatican diplomat to the United Nations, has died. Read more

Pope Francis opens the Holy Door in L’Aquila, Italy.

Pope Francis to open Holy Door in Roman prison on feast of St. Stephen for 2025 Jubilee

Oct 28, 2024

By Kristina Millare

The Holy Father will open the second of five Holy Doors for the 2025 Jubilee Year of Hope in Rome’s... Read more

The official mascot for the Catholic Church’s 2025 Jubilee Year is named “Luce,” which is Italian for “light.”

Meet ‘Luce’: The Vatican’s cartoon mascot for Jubilee 2025

Oct 28, 2024

By Courtney Mares

The mascot, named Luce — which means “light” in Italian — is intended to engage a younger audience and guide... Read more

A candle of St. Jude.

Why is St. Jude the patron saint of lost causes?

Oct 28, 2024

By Francesca Pollio Fenton

On Oct. 28, the Catholic Church celebrates the feast of St. Jude, also known as Thaddeus, one of the 12... Read more

Pope Francis delivers his Sunday Angelus message from a window of the Apostolic Palace overlooking St. Peter’s Square on Oct. 27, 2024.

Pope Francis in Angelus address mourns Catholic priest murdered in Mexico

Oct 27, 2024

By Courtney Mares

The pope called the slain priest “a zealous servant of the Gospel and God’s faithful people” and said he joined... Read more

Pope Francis speaks at a Mass and canonization of 14 new saints in St. Peter's Square on Sunday, Oct. 20, 2024

Live updates: Synod on Synodality concludes with Pope Francis forgoing apostolic exhortation

Oct 27, 2024

By AC Wimmer

Follow EWTN News’ live coverage of the 2024 Synod on Synodality at the Vatican. Get real-time updates, expert analysis, and... Read more

Pope Francis addresses bishops gathered in St. Peter’s Basilica at the Vatican for the Synod on Synodality closing Mass on Oct. 27, 2024.

In synod closing Mass, Pope Francis calls for ‘a Church that hears the cry of the world’

Oct 27, 2024

By Courtney Mares

At the Synod on Synodality closing Mass on Sunday, Pope Francis said that a synodal Church must be “on the... Read more

Pope Francis gives a blessing to participants at the conclusion of the Synod on Synodality at the Vatican, Oct. 26, 2024.

10 questions (and answers) about the Synod on Synodality’s final document

Oct 27, 2024

By Jonathan Liedl

From its magisterial status to proposals on Church governance, here are answers to the most pressing questions about the synod’s... Read more

Lawyer Laura Sgro, left, sits with Gloria Branciani, center, and Marjiam Kovač during a press conference in Rome on Feb. 21, 2024. Branciani and Kovač allege that they were subjected to spiritual, psychological, and sexual abuse by famous mosaic artist Father Marko Rupnik.

Victims feel ‘betrayed’ as Vatican investigation of Rupnik hits one year with no answers

Oct 27, 2024

By Hannah Brockhaus

One year after the Vatican announced it would open a canonical case on Father Marko Rupnik, victims say they feel... Read more

Participants of the Synod on Synodality gather for a group photo on Oct. 26, 2024.

The Synod on Synodality’s final document: What you need to know

Oct 26, 2024

By Almudena Martínez-Bordiú

The text also addresses accountability measures, calling for enhanced financial transparency, and protocols for abuse prevention. Read more

In a surprising move at the conclusion of the Synod on Synodality on Saturday, Oct. 26, 2024, Pope Francis ratified the final report, approved its immediate publication, and said he will not publish a separate postsynodal document.

Pope Francis ratifies Synod on Synodality’s final document, marking new approach to Church reform

Oct 26, 2024

By Hannah Brockhaus

Pope Francis has announced that the final Synod on Synodality document will be adopted without a traditional papal exhortation. Read more

Pope Francis meets with other delegates of the Synod on Synodality at a roundtable discussion in Paul VI Hall at the Vatican on Oct. 17, 2024.

‘We walk together’: U.S. bishops reflect on last global session of Synod on Synodality

Oct 26, 2024

By Kristina Millare

“We walk together and, of course for us, we walk together with Christ,” Archbishop Timothy Broglio said. Read more

Cardinal-elect Tarcisio Isao Kikuchi speaks to CNA on Friday, Oct. 18, 2024, in Rome.

Tokyo’s new cardinal shares what he is looking for in the next pope

Oct 26, 2024

By Courtney Mares

“If a conclave happens very soon, I think what we need is somebody to succeed the policy of Pope Francis,”... Read more

“I’m not known in the Church for being a closed-minded medieval, am I? So you can be sure that I have an open heart to see where the Holy Spirit leads us,” said the prefect of the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith, Cardinal Víctor Manuel Fernández.

Cardinal Fernández says female diaconate will be studied ‘more intensively’

Oct 25, 2024

By Almudena Martínez-Bordiú

Cardinal Victor Fernández also stated that the female diaconate question, although Pope Francis considers it not “mature,” is not a... Read more

Pope Francis drinks mate while in Paraguay in July 2015.

Cookies and empanadas in Dilexit Nos: food references in the teachings of Pope Francis

Oct 25, 2024

By Almudena Martínez-Bordiú

The Holy Father has made reference to food in a humorous tone on several occasions. Read more

Painting of the Sacred Heart found in Rome’s Church of the Gesù, the mother church of the Society of Jesus, more commonly known as the Jesuits. On Oct. 24, 2024, Pope Francis released a new encyclical, “Dilexit Nos” (“He Loved Us”), in which he calls on Catholics to rediscover the love and compassion found in the heart of Jesus Christ.

Dilexit Nos: 7 takeaways from Pope Francis’ new encyclical on the Sacred Heart

Oct 25, 2024

By Courtney Mares

The encyclical, issued on Oct. 24, examines the transformative power of Jesus’ heart as a font of healing for a... Read more

Father Enrique “Kike” Figaredo on Oct. 23, 2024, presents Pope Francis with a wheelchair made by land mine survivors in Cambodia.

Jesuit priest gifts Pope Francis a special wheelchair from Cambodia

Oct 25, 2024

By Almudena Martínez-Bordiú

Apostolic prefect of Battambang in Cambodia Father Enrique “Kike” Figaredo presented Pope Francis with a wheelchair made by land mine... Read more

A smiling Pope Francis is depicted on a sign outside the APEC Haus in Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea, on the occasion of the pontiff's visit, Sept. 7, 2024.

10 inspiring quotes from Pope Francis in his encyclical ‘Dilexit Nos’

Oct 24, 2024

By Almudena Martínez-Bordiú

Here are some of the most inspiring quotes from Pope Francis in his new encyclical “Dilexit Nos” on the divine... Read more