If we want to grow in holiness we have to pay attention and work on ourselves, Pope Francis says. Catholics often know more about their neighbour’s business than they do about the normal spiritual struggles going on in their own hearts and souls, Francis said during his sermon at early morning Mass last Friday. He Read more
The New Zealand Catholic bishops met Pope Francis for an 80-minute private audience in the Vatican on Monday 28 October during their Ad Limina visit to Rome. Pope Francis told the bishops to raise any topic and be free with their comments, said Bishop Stephen Lowe of Hamilton, secretary of the NZ Catholic Bishops Conference. Read more
A carefully planned card trick brought a roar of laughter to a recent meeting Pope Francis had with a group of Capuchin Franciscans from Le Marche Region in Italy. Read more
Pope Francis isn’t known for his love for American football but he posted a tweet that accidentally backed the New Orleans Saints. “Today we give thanks to the Lord for our new #Saints. They walked by faith and now we invoke their intercession.” Read more
The Vatican is promoting a “smart rosary” bracelet connected to a mobile app that’s activated by making the sign of the cross. The device can be worn as a bracelet and is made of 10 consecutive black agate and hematite beads. It also has a data-storing “smart cross”. Taiwan-based tech company GadgTek Inc (GTI) developed Read more
Pope Francis has appointed a new head of the Vatican Security Services and commander of the Gendarmerie (Police). Gianluca Gauzzi Broccoletti (known as Gauzzi), a cybersecurity expert, is taking over the security leadership role after the shock resignation of Commander Domenico Giani. Giani resigned amid a scandal stemming from his role in an leaking information Read more
As Turkish-led forces began the fifth day of their move against Kurdish militias in northeastern Syria Sunday, Pope Francis appealed for dialogue, especially as families in the region are forced to flee from warfare. “My thoughts go once again to the Middle East. In particular, to the beloved and tormented Syria, from which dramatic news Read more
People who oppose the pope put themselves outside the Church, says Cardinal Robert Sarah. “The truth is that the Church is represented on earth by the vicar of Christ, that is by the pope. “And whoever is against the pope is, ipso facto, outside the Church,”. In 2014 Francis appointed Sarah as prefect of the Read more
The Secretary General of the Synod of bishops on the Amazon, Cardinal Lorenzo Baldisseri, says the Vatican will offset the Synod’s carbon emissions. The Synod is expected to generate carbon emissions of 572,809kg. The forestry licenses for the reforestation of 50 hectares in the Amazon basin will offset the emissions. Baldisseri says air travel accounts Read more
The former prime minister of New Zealand Sir John Key met with the Pope in a private audience earlier this year. Key met with Pope Francis at the Vatican in what he described as a “remarkable experience”. He gave the details of the meeting, which were published in NZ Catholic, at a charity event in Read more