Beginning the second leg of his South Asian journey, Pope Francis did not mince words when he addressed government and church leaders of the Philippines on Jan. 16. A day after his triumphal arrival from Sri Lanka, he called on them to combat and eliminate “scandalous” social inequalitie
Gerard O’Connell
Gerard O’Connell is America’s senior Vatican correspondent and author of The Election of Pope Francis: An Inside Story of the Conclave That Changed History. He has been covering the Vatican since 1985.
Posted inVatican Dispatch
Francis Chooses Electors
Pope Francis is engaged in a slow but determined process to remake the College of Cardinals and renew the electors who will choose his successor. His aim is to increase the college’s universality by affirming the churches on the peripheries, to correct present imbalances and to ensure there is
Posted inDispatches
Full Transcript of Pope’s Press Conference on Flight from Manila
In a wide-ranging press conference on the flight from Manila to Rome Pope Francis spoke about corruption in Governments and the Church the need for prudence with freedom of expression why he didn rsquo t meet the Dalai Lama recently and the Church rsquo s position on birth control nbsp He talke
Posted inDispatches
Before Record Crowd, Francis Entrusts a Double Mission to Philippine Catholics
Before a record crowd of between six and seven million people Pope Francis entrusted a double mission to the Philippine Church at his last public mass in this country on Sunday January 18 that included both a domestic and an Asian component At the domestic level he encouraged them to work for jus
Posted inDispatches
Pope Comforts the Survivors of the Typhoon telling them, ‘You are not alone, Jesus never lets you down.’
The wind was blowing increasingly strong the tepid rain was falling steadily as Pope Francis wearing a yellow plastic poncho assured some 300 000 survivors of the worst typhoon in history that Jesus is always with them in the midst of all their sufferings he understands what they are undergoin
Posted inDispatches
Pope in Manila Calls for Elimination of Social Inequalities, Injustices and Corruption
Pope Francis didn rsquo t mince his words when he addressed the state authorities and church leaders of the Philippines He called on them to combat and eliminate ldquo the scandalous rdquo social inequalities and injustices as well as the corruption that is widespread in this land where more th
Posted inDispatches
Millions Turn Out in Manila to Cheer ‘The Pope of the Poor’
Manila came to a standstill Thursday evening Jan 15 as some two million people young and old ran out onto the streets and malls of this metropolis of 10 million inhabitants singing and dancing to welcome ldquo Papa Francisco rdquo It was but the beginning of a four-day lsquo fiesta rsquo
Posted inDispatches
Full text in English of the Pope’s Press Conference on Flight from Colombo to Manila
Pope Francis touched on some major issues during a fifty minute press conference on the six hour flight from Colombo the capital of Sri Lanka to Manila the capital of the Philippines on January 15 Among the most significant issues that he touched on was the limits of freedom of expression and th
Posted inDispatches
Pope, at Shrine at Madhu, Prays for Reconciliation and Rebuilding of the Unity that Was Lost
In an act of powerful symbolism Pope Francis visited the revered Shrine of Our Lady at Madhu in northern Sri Lanka where he recalled ldquo the terrible violence and bloodshed rdquo that ldquo tore open the heart of Sri Lanka rdquo and prayed that through Our Lady rsquo s intercession Jesus w
Posted inDispatches
Pope Canonizes Sri Lanka’s First Saint at Ceremony Attended by 500,000 People
More than half a million Sri Lankans applauded enthusiastically many were moved to tears when Pope Francis declared Joseph Vaz the 17th nbsp century missionary priest the first saint of this beautiful island in the Indian Ocean And then the bells pealed out with joy drowning the applause but n