Praying for peace in Ukraine, Pope Francis remembered both the victims of Russia’s current aggression and the millions of victims of a Soviet-engineered famine 90 years ago.

Despite the headlines of worker deaths, FIFA corruption and L.G.B.T. human rights violations (and yes, banned beer), billions around the world welcome the World Cup with relief.

Pope Francis reiterated the Holy See’s commitment to end the fighting and find a way to obtain “a just peace."

“The plea for peace cannot be suppressed,” Pope Francis said today. “It rises from the hearts of mothers; it is deeply etched on the faces of refugees, displaced families, the wounded and the dying.”

How are negotiations possible, Father Andriy Zelinskyy asked, when the Russian opening position is: “Either you do what we want or we kill you.”

In an exclusive interview, Joe Donnelly, U.S. Ambassador to the Holy See, discusses his diplomatic work with the Vatican—including on the war in Ukraine—with America associate editor Colleen Dulle.