“Let us not become paralyzed by fear of openness or bold gestures or give in to talk of ‘irreconcilable differences’ that, in fact, have nothing to do with the Gospel!”
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 inPolitics & Society, Vatican Dispatch
In Cyprus, Pope Francis has a message for all of Europe: We need dialogue and open doors—not walls.
“The European continent needs reconciliation and unity; it needs courage and enthusiasm, if it is to move forward. For it will not be the walls of fear and the vetoes dictated by nationalist interests that ensure its progress.”
Posted inFaith, Vatican Dispatch
Pope Francis is about to visit Greece and Cyprus — and he’s expected to invite some 50 migrants to come to Rome
The pope sees his visit here as another way to get people in Europe and elsewhere to understand that the greatest humanitarian crisis since World War II requires a global solution.
Posted inFaith, Vatican Dispatch
Interview: Cardinal Scola condemns ‘harsh and insolent attacks’ against Pope Francis
“It seemed to me, right from the beginning, that Francis’ style of pontificate was like a punch in the stomach from the Holy Spirit to wake us up,” Cardinal Angelo Scola says in this exclusive interview.
Posted inFaith, Vatican Dispatch
Pope Francis shares 8 Beatitudes for Bishops, giving a model for the 21st-century pastor
“Blessed is the bishop who makes poverty and sharing his lifestyle because with his witness he is building the kingdom of heaven.”
Posted inFaith, Vatican Dispatch
Pope Francis tells young people: ‘Dream and live, be free and authentic, be the critical conscience of society.’
Pope Francis to young people: “You have been entrusted with an exciting but also challenging task: to stand tall while everything around us seems to be collapsing; to be sentinels prepared to see the light…to be builders amid the many ruins of today’s world; to be capable of dreaming.”
Posted inPolitics & Society, Vatican Dispatch
Pope Francis meets with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas
The Vatican issued a statement insisting that it is “absolutely necessary to reactivate direct dialogue” between Israelis and Palestinians “to achieve a two-state solution.”
Posted inFaith, Vatican Dispatch
Prime Minister Modi invites Pope Francis to visit India
Meeting at the Vatican with Pope Francis, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi extended an invitation to Francis to become the third pope in history to visit India.
Posted inFaith, Vatican Dispatch
Pope Francis and Joe Biden enjoy unusually long meeting at the Vatican
Pope Francis and President Joe Biden talked together in private for 75 minutes, an unusually long time by Vatican standards, a sign that the two leaders had a more in-depth discussion than observers had expected.
Posted inPolitics & Society, Vatican Dispatch
Pope Francis meets President Biden tomorrow. Here’s what to expect.
President Joe Biden and Pope Francis are expected to focus on the pandemic, migration, crises in the Middle East and climate change.