Vatican

Pope Francis ‘improving’ in hospital, Vatican says

Pope Francis is showing improvement, is alert and doing some work, the Vatican said, as the 88-year-old pontiff began his eighth day in hospital battling pneumonia. Vatican spokesperson Matteo Bruni…

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Pope Francis remains hospitalized, diagnosed with bilateral pneumonia

Pope Francis has pneumonia in both lungs and remains hospitalized in Rome after a respiratory tract infection, painting a "complex picture" of his health, the Vatican said. A follow-up CT…

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Pope Francis hospitalised

Pope Francis on Friday was hospitalised after he reportedly struggled to speak during one of his meetings in the morning. The pontiff has been suffering from bronchitis for more than…

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Pope Francis tells weekly audience he still has bronchitis

Pope Francis said on Wednesday he was still suffering from a bout of bronchitis and asked an aide to read prepared remarks for a weekly general audience at the Vatican…

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Concern over Pope’s health after halting homily due to shortness of breath

There is concern over the Pope's health after Argentine-born pontiff was forced on Sunday to interrupt his homily in St. Peter's Square during the Armed Forces Jubilee Sunday due to…

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Pope Francis using sling after injuring forearm in fall

Pope Francis injured his right forearm after a fall in his residence on Thursday but did not suffer any broken bones and continued on with his agenda for the day,…

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Pontiff writes of “evil committed by certain priests” in book

Pope Francis was handed a “large white box” full of documents on “abuse” and “dark dealings” in the Catholic Church over a decade ago when he took over from his…

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Pope names Italian sister as first woman to lead major Vatican office

Pope Francis on Monday named the first woman to lead a major Vatican department, appointing an Italian sister to take charge of the office that oversees the world's Catholic religious…

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Pope opens special ‘Holy Door’ for Catholic Jubilee at Rome prison

Pope Francis made a visit on Thursday to one of the largest prison complexes in Italy, opening a special "Holy Door" for the 2025 Catholic Holy Year, in what the…

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Pope Francis to open Holy Door for Jubilee of Hope in 2025

Pope Francis will break open the Holy Door of St. Peter’s Basilica on Dec. 24. The city of Rome has invested more than 4.8 billion euros ($5 billion) in more…

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Suffering from heavy cold, Pope Francis to lead Sunday prayers from residence

Pope Francis, who has just turned 88 and has been suffering from a heavy cold, will lead the regular Sunday Angelus prayer from inside his residence as a precaution, the…

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Pope reveals he was target of suicide bomb attempt during 2021 Iraq visit

Pope Francis has revealed he was the target of an attempted suicide bombing during his visit to Iraq three years ago, the first by a Catholic pontiff to the country…

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Pope to meet Palestinian president on Thursday

Pope Francis will meet Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas on Thursday, the Vatican said, as the Catholic pontiff has become more vocal in his criticism of Israel's military campaign in Gaza.…

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Pope says No to long homilies, max 10 mins

Pope Francis said at his weekly general audience in St Peter's Wednesday that priests should avoid over-long homilies, which should be 10 minutes maximum."Many times there are long sermons, 20,…

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Vatican to consider classifying ‘spiritual abuse’ as new Catholic crime

Pope Francis has asked the Vatican to study whether the Catholic Church should classify "spiritual abuse" as a new crime in order to address cases where priests use purported mystical…

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New rules issued for streamlined funerals for popes

The Vatican has issued new rules for more streamlined funerals for popes. Among the new features introduced in an update to the Ordo Exsequiarum Romani Pontificis protocol are the certification…

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Jubilee: Pope to open Holy Door at Rebibbia on Dec. 26

The day after the official beginning of the Jubilee, on December 26, Pope Francis will be at Rome's Rebibbia prison to open a Holy Door, Monsignor Rino Fisichella revealed this…

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Pope Francis urges Catholics to abandon ‘mad pursuit’ of money

Pope Francis urged the world's 1.4 billion Catholics to abandon the "mad pursuit" of money and instead devote themselves to their faith in a new encyclical letter, the highest form…

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China says it has extended agreement with Vatican on bishops

China and the Vatican have agreed to extend an accord on the appointment of Catholic bishops in China for a longer period of four years, Beijing said on Tuesday. The…

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Pope’s autobiography to come out during Jubilee

Italian publisher Mondadori said that Pope Francis's autobiography 'Spera' (Hope) will come out in the world's major languages in over 80 countries in January 2025 for the Catholic Church's Jubilee.It…

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Pope Francis to meet Ukraine’s Zelenskiy on Friday

Pope Francis will meet Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy on Friday morning, the Vatican said on Wednesday. Francis last saw the Ukrainian president on the sidelines of the Group of Seven…

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Pope’s diverse choices of new cardinals won’t smooth path for successor

When Pope Francis appoints new Catholic cardinals, as he did on Sunday, the move is often described as the pontiff pushing to influence the group that one day will select…

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Pope says Oct 7 day of prayer and fasting for peace

Monday October 7 will be a Christian day of prayer and fasting for peace on the anniversary of the Hamas attacks on Israel, Pope Francis told his weekly general audience…

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Pope Francis to open major Vatican summit, but hot issues on hold

Pope Francis will open a month-long summit of global Catholic leaders on Wednesday but it is likely to defer any decision on divisive issues such as women's ordination and blessings…

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Pope says doctors who provide abortions are ‘hitmen’

Pope Francis wrapped up a troubled visit to Belgium on Sunday by doubling down on his traditional views on women and abortion and demanding that Catholic bishops stop covering up…

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Pope Francis’ Upcoming Trip to Luxembourg and Belgium to go ahead as planned

Pope Francis will press ahead with plans to travel to Luxembourg and Belgium later this week, despite cancelling his meetings for Monday due to a mild flu, the Vatican said.…

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Pope Francis says refusing aid to migrants a ‘grave sin’

Pope Francis on Wednesday strongly decried the treatment of migrants crossing the Mediterranean Sea to enter Europe, saying it was a "grave sin" not to offer aid to migrant vessels.…

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Pope’s weekly audience interrupted by animal rights activists

Pope Francis's weekly general audience at the Vatican on Wednesday was briefly interrupted by two women from an animal rights group, who shouted and held up signs against bullfighting. The…

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Pope appeals for good politics, says enough scandals, corruption

Pope Francis prayed for political leaders to be at the service of their own people in his monthly prayer intentions for August in a video released on Tuesday by the…

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Cardinal Mario Grech announces consultation process to discuss women as deacons

The global Catholic Church remains divided on whether to allow women to serve as deacons, according to a Vatican document released on Tuesday, just weeks after Pope Francis ruled out…

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Catholic Church split on women deacons, Vatican document shows

The global Catholic Church is split on whether to allow women to serve as deacons, a Vatican document showed on Tuesday, just weeks after Pope Francis ruled out any opening…

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Pope warns democracy is in bad health

Pope Francis denounced populist politics and what he called "the dross of ideology" on Sunday, warning that democracy was not in good shape in many parts of the world. The…

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Italian Archbishop Vigano found guilty of schism, excommunicated by Vatican

Italian Archbishop Carlo Maria Vigano, a fierce ultra-conservative critic of Pope Francis, has been found guilty of schism and excommunicated, the Vatican's doctrinal office said in a statement on Friday.…

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Pope Francis warns against legalising drugs, denounces drug traffickers

Pope Francis spoke out on Wednesday against the legalisation of drugs and denounced drug traffickers as "assassins", while also calling for help and support for addicts. "A reduction in drug…

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Pope Benedict’s ex-aide Archbishop Gaenswein appointed Vatican ambassador to Baltic countries

Pope Francis has given a new job to the former secretary of the late Pope Benedict XVI, in an apparent sign of reconciliation with the prelate after publicly falling out…

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Pope tells priests to keep it snappy or people will nod off

Priests should keep their homilies short and speak for a maximum of eight minutes to prevent members of the congregation from nodding off, Pope Francis said on Wednesday. The homily,…

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Pope warns fading memory of World War Two raises conflict fears

The horrors of World War Two are being forgotten, thereby raising the risk of a new global conflict, Pope Francis said in comments marking the 80th anniversary of the 1944…

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Vatican to EU election voters: don’t dehumanise migrants

The Vatican's point man on migration and social justice on Monday urged EU citizens who might be tempted to vote for far-right parties in this week's European Parliament elections to…

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Vatican investigator urges bishops to report all suspected child abuse

The head of the Vatican office that disciplines predator priests called on bishops across the world to report all suspect child abuse cases to him in order "to clean up…

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Pope apologizes after alleged use of homophobic slur

Pope Francis, widely quoted as having used a highly derogatory word to describe the LGBT community, did not intend to use homophobic language and apologises to anyone offended by it,…

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Pope Francis’s Remarks Towards The LGBT Community Spark Outrage

Pope Francis used a highly derogatory term towards the LGBT community as he reiterated in a closed-door meeting with Italian bishops that gay people should not be allowed to become…

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Roberto Benigni Advocates Dreaming and Embracing Doubt

The Italian actor and comedian Roberto Benigni is best known in the English-speaking world for his 1997 film Life is Beautiful, which won three Oscars. But, in his native country, he’s just…

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Pope attributes second miracle to Catholic teenager Carlo Acutis, clearing the way for sainthood

Pope Francis has attributed a second miracle to an Italian teenager who in his short life used his computer skills to spread the Catholic faith, clearing the way for him…

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Pope in Luxembourg, Belgium 26 to 29 Sep

Pope Francis will travel to Luxembourg and Belgium from 26 to 29 September, the Vatican said Monday."Accepting the invitation of the respective Heads of State and ecclesiastical authorities" Pope Francis…

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Benigni to join Pope for Children’s Day

Life Is Beautiful Oscar winner Roberto Benigni will read a monologue alongside Pope Francis at a ceremony in St Peter's Square marking World Children's Day on Sunday May 26, the…

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Vatican urges caution over weeping Madonnas and other supposed apparitions

The Vatican issued new guidelines on Friday recommending a cautious approach to supposed supernatural events such as weeping Madonnas and blood-dripping crucifixes that have for centuries whipped up the Catholic…

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Pope Francis to visit Turkey next year

Pope Francis is planning to visit Turkey next year to mark the anniversary of the First Council of Nicaea, the spiritual head of the world's Orthodox Christians said.The early centuries…

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Vatican staff start unprecedented legal action over labour conditions

Forty-nine Vatican Museums employees have started an unprecedented labour dispute over what they say are unfair and poor conditions at their workplace, which could lead to an embarrassing lawsuit against…

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A mother must never to choose between job, kids – Pope Francis

Pope Francis said Friday that mothers must not be put in a position in which they have to choose between their jobs or their children at the 'States General' conference…

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Pope puts Rome in panic mode by declaring 2025 Holy Year

Pope Francis used the Feast of Ascension on Thursday to preside over the reading of a papal bull at St. Peter's Basilica in Rome, declaring 2025 a Holy Year for…

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Pope makes first visit out of Rome for seven months after health scares

Pope Francis made his first trip out of Rome for seven months on Sunday with a packed visit to Venice that took in an art exhibition, a prison and a…

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Pope appears in better health ahead of busy Easter schedule

By Alvise Armellini Pope Francis, whose frail health has been a growing source of concern in recent weeks, appeared in better shape on Wednesday ahead of a busy Easter week…

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‘No concerning situations’ regarding Pope’s health

Pope Francis is an 87-year-old man whose periodic bouts of poor health and fatigue that have forced him to give up recent readings are only to be expected for a…

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Pope Francis reflects on his life and mortality in memoir

By Philip Pullella VATICAN CITY, March 15 (Reuters) - Pope Francis, at 87 increasingly weak and wobbly, takes a trip down memory lane and speaks of his hopes for the Roman Catholic…

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Pope says option of resigning is only ‘a distant hypothesis’

VATICAN CITY, March 14 (Reuters) - Pope Francis has no intention of resigning as he feels that his health is good enough to allow him to carry on, he says…

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Pope, still nursing a cold, again limits public speaking

VATICAN CITY, March 6 (Reuters) - Pope Francis on Wednesday said he was still suffering from a cold as he again limited his speaking at a weekly audience in St…

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Pope Francis, recovering from bronchitis, calls for end of Gaza conflict

VATICAN CITY, March 3 (Reuters) - Pope Francis on Sunday appealed for an end to the conflict in Gaza, as he showed signs of recovery after suffering from bronchitis. On…

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