October 4, Pope Francis signed his new encyclical, Fratelli Tutti during a visit to Assisi. The encyclical calls for a new kind of politics and emphasises social friendship as a way to build a more just and peaceful world. It encourages the contribution of all people and institutions and seeks to build a global movement Read more
There is no connection between the timing of Cardinal George Pell’s return to Rome and the recent resignation of Cardinal Angelo Becciu. Pell and Becciu were known rivals in the bid to reform the finances of the Holy See before Pell returned to Australia to face child sex abuse charges. “There is no connection between Read more
Fabiola Gianotti’s life and work for the past several years have had a lot to do with collisions. But it’s the kind of collision that yields good things. If her work on a Vatican commission entails any sort of conflict with other members, such “collisions” could yield similarly good fruit. Pope Francis on Tuesday appointed Read more
Cardinal George Pell has returned to Rome. It is the first time Pell has returned to the Holy See since 2017, since he left to face historic child abuse charges. In 2014 Pope Francis appointed Pell, then aged 73, to lead the Vatican Secretariat of State. His role was to reform the Vatican’s finances. However, Read more
The Vatican foreign minister, Archbishop Paul Gallagher says US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo’s visit to the Holy See did not include an audience with Pope Francis. Pompeo (pictured) has been openly critical of the Vatican’s relationship with China. Last month he published an essay in First Things suggesting the Vatican had compromised its moral Read more
A new probe into Vatican finances coincided with the resignation of Cardinal Angelo Becciu (pictured) last week. His resignation followed an unscheduled meeting with the pope. Francis told him he had lost his trust and ordered him to step down. News of Becciu’s resignation was followed by reports that Italian businessman Gianluigi Torzi has provided Read more
Hong Kong’s Cardinal Joseph Zen is begging Pope Francis for a good bishop to be chosen to lead the Hong Kong Diocese. Zen flew to Rome to deliver his letter so it could be delivered without delay to the pope. His request came while Vatican diplomats are working against the clock to refresh the Vatican’s Read more
The Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith (CDF)has formally requested that well-known Irish Redemptorist Fr Tony Flannery, sign a statement affirming his acceptance of church teaching as formulated by the CDF. The focus of the CDF’s request focussed on homosexuality, civil unions between persons of the same sex, the admission of women to the Read more
A cardinal sacked by Pope Francis says he is “devastated,” he did not commit any crimes and has had no communication with the Vatican magistrates. Cardinal Angelo Becciu called his downfall “surreal.” Becciu, former ‘substitute’ (No 2) at the Vatican’s Secretariat of State and until Friday, prefect for the Congregation for the Causes of the Read more
Catholics who demand Communion on the tongue despite Covid-19 restrictions are selfish, Fr Liam Power from Waterford, Ireland says. They don’t seem to “respect the danger this represented to others.” They are also a cause of “very serious embarrassment for priests, many of whom are elderly,” he says. Although the number of people wanting to Read more