“Pope Leo XIV joins in the mourning of the families and of the entire Swiss Confederation” and “wishes to express to the relatives of the victims his compassion and his concern.”
Vatican
Vatican says close to 3 million people saw Pope Leo at the Vatican in 2025
Close to 3 million pilgrims and visitors attended audiences, liturgies or meetings at the Vatican with Pope Leo XIV from the time of his election in May through December, according to the Prefecture of the Papal Household.
As a year of two popes ends, Catholics and the world watch as Leo takes charge
While the year was marked by profound change, the new pope emphasized his intention to lead the world’s 1.4 billion Catholics in a spirit of continuity with his predecessor.
As Holy Doors close, cardinals emphasize God’s arms are always open
On the feast of the Epiphany, Jan. 6, Pope Leo will solemnly close the Holy Door of St. Peter’s Basilica at the Vatican, formally concluding the Holy Year 2025, which Pope Francis opened on Christmas Eve 2024. But diocesan and other local celebrations of the Jubilee concluded Dec. 28.
Open your hearts to baby Jesus and one another, Pope Leo says on Christmas
In celebrating the morning liturgy publicly, Pope Leo restored a tradition that had lapsed for 30 years.
Pope Leo in Christmas address to Vatican officials asks: ‘Is it possible to be friends in the Roman Curia?’
Mindful that Pope Francis had often used the traditional pre-Christmas address to the Roman Curia to deliver some hard messages, Vatican officials had waited in expectation to see what Pope Leo would say.
Pope Leo picks Chicago-born Ronald Hicks to follow Dolan in New York
In naming Bishop Hicks for this high-profile post, Pope Leo chose a man whom he already knew; they met in 2024 when the then-Cardinal Robert Prevost gave a talk at a parish in the Joliet diocese.
Church altar featuring homeless man goes on display near his grave at the Vatican
In 2018, German artist Michael Triegel asked a homeless man in Rome to pose for a drawing, thinking that he would make an ideal model for St. Peter if he ever needed to paint the first pope.
Pope Leo and Israeli president speak by phone about Sydney attack, peace in Gaza
Pope Leo XIV and Israeli President Isaac Herzog spoke by telephone Dec. 17, just days after a terrorist attack on a Hanukkah celebration in Australia led to the deaths of 15 people.
The Vatican tabled women deacons again. Did they take women’s discernment seriously?
If the church approaches women’s discernment with condescension instead of curiosity, it risks undermining the process of synodality.
