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Politics & SocietyVatican Dispatch
Gerard O’Connell
Pope Francis announced several times that he hoped Cardinal Zuppi would go to Beijing on a peace mission, but it has taken a long time for the Chinese to agree to accept him.
Politics & SocietyVatican Dispatch
Gerard O’Connell
The Ukrainian bishops did not hold back during a nearly two-hour private audience with the pope.
Pope Francis thanks journalists at the end of his inflight press conference on the way back to Rome from Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, Sept. 4, 2023, after a four-day visit to the Asian country. To the left is Father George Koovakad, the organizer of papal trips. (CNS photo/Lola Gomez)
FaithVatican Dispatch
Gerard O’Connell
On the plane home from Mongolia, Pope Francis answered several questions about this October’s synod of bishops.
Pope Francis waves as people behind him raise a Chinese flag before the pope's Mass in Steppe Arena in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, Sept. 3, 2023. At the end of the Mass, the pope sent greetings to China and to Chinese Catholics. (CNS photo/Vatican Media)
FaithVatican Dispatch
Gerard O’Connell
Since the beginning of his pontificate, Pope Francis has constantly looked to the peripheries both in the choice of countries to visit and men to make cardinals.. And he has consistently looked to the East where he detects the first signs of a new springtime for the Catholic Church
People hold pictures of Pope Francis with the national flags of the People's Republic of China and of the Vatican as they wait for Mongolian President Ukhnaagin Khurelsukh, and Pope Francis to meet, Saturday, Sept. 2, 2023, in front of a gigantic statue of former Khagan of the Mongol Empire Genghis Khan in Sukhbaatar Square in Ulaanbaatar. (AP Photo/Ng Han Guan)
FaithVatican Dispatch
Gerard O’Connell
Among the hundreds of onlookers from several countries at the back of the square were many Catholics from mainland China, present in defiance of an order from the authorities in Beijing prohibiting not only the bishops of mainland China but also the country’s Catholics from traveling to Mongolia.
FaithVatican Dispatch
Gerard O’Connell
Onboard his flight to Mongolia, Pope Francis said he knew some people were upset by the remarks, but the church must keep moving forward. “They got angry, but let’s move on, move on.”