With heavy hearts and profound gratitude, we commend to our loving and one true God the soul of Pope Francis, the good and faithful “Servant of Servants” who guided our Universal Church and the Catholic faithful these past 12 years. Pope Francis’ example of humility and simplicity, his constant call to seek peace, and his […]
VATICAN CITY — Pope Francis passed away at 7:35 a.m. Rome time on Easter Monday, April 21, at his residence in the Vatican’s Casa Santa Marta, as confirmed by the Holy See Press Office. The 88-year-old pontiff led the Catholic Church for a little more than 12 years. Cardinal Kevin Farrell, camerlengo of the Holy […]
VATICAN CITY — Pope Francis on Wednesday said Jesus continues to go out in search of those who are lost or without hope in a catechesis titled “Jesus Christ Our Hope.” In his written catechesis, released by the Vatican on April 2, the Holy Father described Jesus’ encounter with Zacchaeus – a man “who seems […]
Shortly before returning to his home in the Vatican on Sunday, Pope Francis made a brief appearance from a fifth-floor balcony of the Gemelli Clinic in Rome to a crowd of faithful gathered outside the hospital. The moment marked his first public engagement in weeks. Waving and giving a “thumps-up” before blessing the faithful gathered […]
VATICAN CITY — Pope Francis has appointed a NASA geophysicist, a Harvard genetics professor, and a Chinese embryonic development researcher among five new members of the Pontifical Academy of Sciences, the Vatican announced Friday. The new appointees include Maria Zuber, an American planetary scientist involved in multiple NASA missions; Olivier Pourquié, a professor of genetics […]
VATICAN CITY — Pope Francis asked Christians on Ash Wednesday to set out in the footsteps of Jesus Christ, full of hope, throughout the season of Lent. In his prepared March 5 catechesis, the Holy Father, who remains in Rome’s Gemelli Hospital for treatment of double pneumonia, spoke about the 12-year-old Jesus’ desire to live […]
Pope Francis’ prayer intention for the month of March is for families in crisis. “We all dream about a beautiful, perfect family but there’s no such thing as a perfect family,” Pope Francis said in a video released March 4. “Every family has its own problems as well as its tremendous joys.” He pointed out […]
CNA — Pope Francis’ health condition “still remains reserved” after he “presented an isolated crisis of bronchospasm,” the Holy See Press Office said in a statement Friday evening Rome time. The event “resulted in an episode of vomiting with inhalation and sudden worsening of the respiratory picture,” the statement continues. The pope was “promptly bronchoaspirated […]
Pope Francis entered the hospital for treatment of bronchitis on Feb. 14. Almost two weeks later, doctors say the pope – who contracted a case of double pneumonia while at Rome’s Gemelli Hospital and experienced a “respiratory crisis” on Saturday – will remain in the facility while recovering due to his “complex” medical situation. An […]
VATICAN CITY — Pope Francis’ mild early-stage kidney insufficiency “subsided” on Wednesday, according to the Vatican. “The Holy Father’s clinical condition over the past 24 hours has shown further slight improvement,” the Holy See Press Office stated. “The mild renal insufficiency noted in recent days has receded.” Despite the improvement, the latest medical report stated […]
