When was the last time you shared a meal with a poor person? For Pope Francis, it was just a couple of weeks ago. On Nov. 19, the Holy Father celebrating the first World Day of the Poor broke bread with not only one poor person, but with some 1,200 poor brothers and sisters (see Read more
China has banned its citizens from visiting the Vatican. The Vatican is a popular destination with Chinese tourists. The recent resumption of diplomatic talks between the Vatican and China has prompted an increase in the flow of tourists-pilgrims. If he realises they are at the Vatican, Pope Francis greets them personally and poses for selfies Read more
Pope Francis wants the international community to take “decisive measures” to resolve the problems causing hundreds of thousands of Rohingya Muslims to flee Myanmar. He also says it is “imperative” for world governments to immediately provide assistance to help the Bangladeshi government cope with Asia’s worst refugee crisis in decades. Bangladesh has opened its borders Read more
Interfaith dialogue has been a special feature of Pope Francis’s recent trip to Myanmar and Bangladesh. He is striving to have “the wealth of our differences” to be part of the conversations between religions. Read more
Pope Francis says he is “profoundly grieved to learn of the great loss of life caused by the terrorist attacks on the Rawda mosque in north Sinai.” His distress was echoed by international religious and political leaders. They included the Archbishop of Canterbury, President Donald Trump, the Turkish Foreign Ministry and French President Emmanuel Macron. Read more
Global “titans of technology” are forcing workers into a form of slavery, says Britain’s trade union leader Frances O’Grady. Speaking to a two-day summit of Catholic and labour movement leaders at the Vatican last Friday, O’Grady said the world needs a new figure like Cardinal Manning. (Manning was influential in setting the modern-day Catholic Church Read more
In a message the Vatican translated into eight languages, Pope Francis has sharp words for politicians he says are stoking racism. Migration has become a top political issue in many countries including the United States, Italy, Australia and Germany. Francis’s speech was released in the lead-up to the 2018 World Day of Peace which will Read more
The Hon. Aupito William Sio has just returned from Europe where he had an audience with Pope Francis and represented New Zealand at COP23, the world’s most important climate change conference. The Māngere electorate MP, who won his seat for the fourth time with another massive majority, is now the Minister for Pacific People and Associate Read more
A new papal diplomat department inside the Vatican’s Secretariat of State has been established. The department will oversee papal diplomats’ selection and work, career advancement and working conditions. Named the “Section for the Diplomatic Staff of the Holy See”, the new department will be led by Archbishop Jan Romeo Pawlowski. About 300 priest diplomats will Read more
A number of people close to Francis have been looking forward eagerly to a book out this week in Italy that is sure to lay to rest the myth that somehow, he lacks the philosophical and theological ballast to be pope. Massimo Borghesi’s dazzling ‘intellectual biography’ of Jorge Mario Bergoglio shows that this criticism – Read more