Tag - vatican

 
 

VATICAN

Empowering nuns and laypeople could help preserve struggling parishes and restore the Catholic Church’s role as a vital community anchor, especially with nuns who have long been its most dedicated and overlooked servants.
COMMENTARY / World
May 12, 2025
To save Catholicism, let’s talk nuns, not popes
All eyes were on Rome as Pope Leo XIV was announced. But to secure the future of the faith, Catholics should look closer to home.
Pope Leo XIV, in his first public appearance after he was elected, on the balcony of St. Peter’s Basilica in Vatican City, on Thursday
WORLD / Politics
May 12, 2025
World Catholics see the first American pope as hardly American
The new pope, formerly Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost, has signaled that his identity will defy easy categorization.
Newly elected Pope Leo XIV, formerly Cardinal Robert Prevost of the United States, appears on the balcony of St. Peter's Basilica at the Vatican on Thursday.
WORLD
May 9, 2025
In his first appearance, Pope Leo offers three big clues about his papacy
Although Leo follows in the tradition of Pope Francis, he signaled he is a new, and different, pope.
American faithful celebrate after Pope Leo XIV appeared at the central balcony of the Vatican's St. Peter’s Basilica following his election on Thursday.
COMMENTARY / World
May 9, 2025
The new American pope can take Catholics in three directions
Americans (and Donald Trump) may want to stake their claims on him, but he now belongs to a much bigger organization.
Newly elected Pope Leo XIV, Robert Prevost waves from the main central loggia balcony of the St Peter's Basilica, after the cardinals ended the conclave, in The Vatican, on Thursday.
WORLD
May 9, 2025
Robert Prevost surprises as first U.S. pope, taking name Leo XIV
Cardinal Robert Prevost was elected as the surprise choice to be the new leader of the Catholic Church on Thursday.
Workers set up scaffolding at the Sistine Chapel in Vatican City on April 28 ahead of the conclave.
WORLD
May 7, 2025
Michelangelo meets James Bond: How Sistine Chapel conclave is kept secret
Various security measures are in place to prevent the transmitting of information, and cardinals will be in a protective envelope at all times.
Cardinals chant the Latin hymn "Veni Creator Spiritus" ("Come Creator Spirit") in the Sistine Chapel before the start of the conclave at the Vatican on March 12, 2013. The two-day conclave went on to elect Pope Francis.
WORLD / Society
Apr 28, 2025
Doves, deaths and rations: Papal elections over time
In the past, cardinals electing a new pope endured spartan conditions and were even locked up so long that some of them died.
Pallbearers carry the coffin of Pope Francis during the funeral ceremony at the Vatican on Saturday.
WORLD
Apr 27, 2025
All eyes turn to conclave after Pope Francis' funeral
On Monday morning, cardinals will hold their fifth general meeting since the pope's death, at which they are expected to announce a date for the conclave.
Pallbearers carry the coffin of Pope Francis at the end of the funeral ceremony in St. Peter's Square in the Vatican on Saturday.
WORLD
Apr 27, 2025
Francis laid to rest as 400,000 mourn pope 'with open heart'
The Vatican said 400,000 people packed St. Peter's Square and lined the streets of Rome for the funeral of the first Latin American leader of the world's 1.4 billion Catholics.
Pope Francis, a reformer known for his humility, inclusivity and focus on social justice, passed away at 88, leaving behind a divided church and a legacy of advocating for humanity's most vulnerable.
EDITORIALS
Apr 25, 2025
The Catholic church loses a lion
Francis’ spirit of inclusion should define who we are as human beings and his compassion should be the lodestar for action, both personal and political.
Cardinals stand, on the day of the translation of Pope Francis' body, in St. Peter's Basilica at the Vatican, on Wednesday.
WORLD
Apr 24, 2025
Who will be the next pope? Some hints to watch for
The process to choose a new pope is long and secretive, with most of the world's 252 cardinals coming to Rome to take part.
The government plans to send Foreign Minister Takeshi Iwaya to the funeral of Pope Francis.
JAPAN
Apr 24, 2025
Japan plans to send foreign minister to pope's funeral
The head of the Catholic Church died Monday at the age of 88. His funeral is due to take place at the Vatican on Saturday.
Pope Francis' body is carried in a coffin to Saint Peter's Basilica, on the day of its translation, at the Vatican, on Wednesday.
WORLD
Apr 24, 2025
Thousands honor Pope Francis in St. Peter's Basilica
Mourners flood the Vatican to bid farewell to the late Pope Francis, whose funeral will be held Saturday, with world leaders set to attend.
Pope Francis was known for his strong environmentalism, highlighted by his influential 2015 encyclical calling for global climate action.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Apr 23, 2025
The next pope will help decide the planet’s fate
As much of the world retreats from climate activism, the Vatican has a chance to stand out by choosing another vocal environmentalist to lead 1.4 billion Catholics.
Candles and flowers are placed next to images of the late Pope Francis at the entrance of the Buenos Aires Cathedral on Monday.
WORLD / Society
Apr 22, 2025
What happens after the pope dies?
The Catholic Church will first enter a period known as "Sede Vacante," during which a senior cardinal takes over day-to-day affairs.
Members of the clergy celebrate Mass in memory of Pope Francis, following the death of the pontiff, at the Metropolitan Cathedral of Our Lady of Peace, in La Paz, Bolivia, on Monday.
COMMENTARY / World
Apr 22, 2025
A conclave to test Pope Francis’ legacy
Francis unraveled many knots after his elevation in March 2013, leaving the question of whether he did enough to secure his legacy now that he’s passed.
Argentine artist Javier Sativa draws the face of the late Pope Francis on a street in front of the entrance of the Buenos Aires Cathedral on Monday. Francis died Monday at 88, a day after making a much hoped-for appearance at St. Peter's Square on Easter Sunday, the Vatican said in a statement.
WORLD
Apr 22, 2025
Pope Francis' death from a stroke sets off global tributes and mourning
World leaders from U.S. President Donald Trump to Russian leader Vladimir Putin paid tribute to the pope's moral and spiritual leadership.
Pope Francis blesses the faithful during the weekly general audience at the Vatican in August 2023.
WORLD
Apr 21, 2025
Pope Francis, radical leader who broke the papal mold, dies at 88
Francis' often turbulent reign was marked by division and tension as he sought to overhaul the hidebound institution.
Pope Francis addresses the crowd from the main balcony of St. Peter's basilica during the Urbi et Orbi message as part of Easter celebrations on Sunday.
WORLD
Apr 20, 2025
Pope wishes 'Happy Easter' to faithful in appearance at St Peter's Square
The Pope's address, read out, condemned "worrisome" anti-Semitism, and the "deplorable" situation in Gaza.
Christian worshippers take part in a Good Friday procession as they carry a cross with a Jesus statue in the town of Klayaa, in southern Lebanon, on March 29, 2024.
COMMENTARY / World
Mar 31, 2025
Can the Jesus of history support the Christ of faith?
I would not expect a non-Christian writer to simply embrace the thesis that events in the New Testament did mostly happen as related.

Longform

Japan's growing ranks of centenarians are redefining what it means to live in a super-aging society.
What comes after 100?