The two leaders also spoke by telephone Dec. 19 during which the 82-year-old president thanked the pope “for his continued advocacy to alleviate global suffering.”

In this episode of Inside the Vatican, Colleen and Gerry examine insights from Pope Francis' forthcoming autobiography and reflect on the first-ever visit of a pope to the Mediterranean island of Corsica on Sunday, Dec. 5.

Previously serving as Pope Benedict XVI’s private secretary and later as prefect of the Papal Household, Archbishop Georg Gänswein was sent home to Germany by Pope Francis in June 2023—“a decision that had to be digested,” he said.

For the first time, women will serve on the Ordinary Council of the General Secretariat of the Synod.

Catholic LGBTQ+ group “La Tenda di Gionata” (”Jonathan’s Tent”) is among the many groups to register a pilgrimage to St. Peter's Basilica for the Holy Year. They are among the hundreds of groups not part of the Vatican’s 35 official, special jubilees.

Readers react to a papal election on the big screen.