Pope Francis’ creation of a group of cardinals to help him govern the Church does not mean he is giving up any of his papal authority — but it may reduce the powers of the Vatican secretary of state. Paolo Gherri, who teaches the theology of canon law at the Pontifical Lateran University, said he Read more
In a recently published book on the Eucharist a New Zealand Mercy sister, Dr Kathleen Rushton, has provided an historical context for Pope Francis’ gesture of including women among those whose feet he washed on Holy Thursday. In a chapter entitled Rediscovering Forgotten Features: Scripture, Tradition and Whose Feet May Be Washed on Holy Thursday Night, Read more
Pope Francis has appointed a commission of eight cardinals — including Cardinal George Pell of Sydney — to advise him on governing the Church and reforming the Roman Curia. Observers consider it is significant that the commission includes only one prelate currently serving in the Vatican — Cardinal Giuseppe Bertello, president of the Vatican city-state Read more
Veteran Catholic correspondent John Allen has delved into the background of Pope Francis as a bishop and cardinal in Argentina and clarified his record on such issues as liberation theology, sex abuse guidelines, civil unions and the former military dictatorship. On the Pope’s record in Argentina, Allen says: = Despite Archbishop Jorge Bergoglio’s reputation as Read more
In Rome, one of Jorge Mario Bergoglio’s first acts as Pope Francis was to call his newsdealer back home in Buenos Aires and cancel his daily delivery. In New York, the Rev. Matt Malone seemed reasonably confident that a similar papal ax would not fall on America, the venerable Jesuit weekly that he edits. “I know for a Read more
Pope Francis has asked Cardinal José Policarpo of Lisbon if he can consecrate his pontificate to Our Lady of Fatima. Addressing a general assembly of the Portuguese Bishops’ Conference, the cardinal said: “Pope Francis asked me twice whether he could consecrate his new ministry to Our Lady of Fatima. “It is a mandate I can Read more
United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon has praised Pope Francis as “a man of peace and purpose” following their first meeting at the Vatican. “He is a voice for the voiceless. I look forward to continuing our conversation,” Ban said, adding that he had invited the Pope to visit the UN “at his earliest convenience”. Read more
Pope Francis and the United Kingdom’s Catholic bishops expressed sadness and prayed for the soul of Baroness Thatcher, the Iron Lady” who led the British government from 1979 to 1990. The Pope recalled with appreciation “the Christian values which underpinned her commitment to public service and to the promotion of freedom among the family of Read more
Pope Francis has directed the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith to “act decisively” on cases of priestly sex abuse. The Pope discussed the congregation’s responsibilities for at least an hour on April 5 with its prefect, Archbishop Gerhard Muller, but the formal statement following the meeting referred only to dealing with sexual abuse. Read more
Pope Francis has made his first appointment to the Vatican’s central bureaucracy, choosing a friend who is the head of the Franciscan order to help run the congregation for religious. Until his appointment as secretary of the congregation, Father José Rodríguez Carballo was in his second term as minister general of the Orders of Friars Read more