The Vatican has approved the promotion of devotion to the Virgin Mary at Medjugorje but did not make any declaration on the alleged supernatural character of the Marian apparitions there.
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 inFaith, Vatican Dispatch
Women deacons, LGBT issues not on the agenda for October’s synod meeting
At a press conference today, Cardinal Grech made clear that there’s no point in returning to these hot-button topics this October since they were already discussed at the first session and are now being studied in-depth.
Posted inPolitics & Society, Vatican Dispatch
Pope Francis talks Gaza war, China deal, sex abuse and more on flight back to Rome
Will he visit Argentina? Why didn’t he denounce the death penalty in Singapore? Is he satisfied with the results of the Vatican-China deal? Pope Francis answered these questions and more on the flight back to Rome.
Posted inPolitics & Society, Vatican Dispatch
Pope Francis: Trump and Harris are ‘both against life’ but Catholics must vote and choose ‘lesser evil’
Asked about the U.S. presidential election, Pope Francis weighed in on the choice between Donald Trump and Kamala Harris.
Posted inFaith, Vatican Dispatch
Pope Francis reminds leaders in wealthy Singapore: Don’t neglect the poor, migrant or elderly
On the final leg of his 12-day journey to the East, Pope Francis moved from three countries struggling with poverty to a world of opulence in Singapore, the world’s third-largest financial hub.
Posted inPolitics & Society, Vatican Dispatch
Pope Francis in Singapore: visiting a small but influential Catholic Church
Pope Francis is “popular among Catholics here, but may also be [seen as] influential among the general public, which sees him as an international leader for peace, harmony and equality,” Francis Lim, S.J., said.
Posted inFaith, Vatican Dispatch
Pope Francis celebrates Mass for nearly half the population of Timor Leste
Some 600,000 Catholics in Timor Leste, almost half the population of the majority-Catholic country, attended the Mass celebrated by Pope Francis on the evening of Sept. 10.
Posted inPolitics & Society, Vatican Dispatch
A brief history of Timor Leste, the most Catholic country in Asia
Pope Francis is the first pope to visit Timor Leste since the country won independence in 2002.
Posted inFaith, Vatican Dispatch
Pope Francis visits ‘the periphery of the peripheries’ in Vanimo, Papua New Guinea
Pope Francis’ 12-day trip continued with a visit to the remote city of Vanimo in Papua New Guinea.
Posted inFaith, Vatican Dispatch
In Papua New Guinea, Pope Francis addresses economic inequality and challenges to peace
Arriving in Papua New Guinea, Pope Francis called for greater efforts toward material development and lasting peace in the rural country, which has been plagued by economic underdevelopment and violence.