Pope Francis returns to Asia for the second time in less than six months, traveling to Sri Lanka and the Philippines in coming days to underscore his concern for inter-religious dialogue, poverty and the environment.
Pope Francis on Thursday condemned the "brutal persecution" of minorities by Islamic State insurgents and said the joy of Christmas was marred by the suffering of children in the Middle East and around the world.
President Barack Obama announced the United States would restore diplomatic relations it severed with Cuba more than 50 years ago, drawing resistance from lawmakers opposed to reconciling with the communist-run island.
It was a heartwarming story for legions of pet owners and animal lovers around the world.Pope Francis, talking to a distraught boy whose pet had died, declared there was a place in heaven for the creatures we share our lives with.
Pope Francis called for a global mobilization to combat human trafficking and slavery on Wednesday, appealing to consumers to shun goods that may have been produced by exploited workers.
The Vatican's top prosecutor has frozen 16 million euros in bank accounts owned by two former Vatican bank managers and a lawyer as part of an investigation into the sale of Vatican-owned real estate in the 2000s, according to the freezing order and other legal documents.
Pope Francis said on Sunday that equating Islam with violence was wrong and called on Muslim leaders to issue a global condemnation of terrorism to help dispel the stereotype.
Pope Francis prayed silently alongside a senior Islamic cleric in Istanbul's Blue Mosque on Saturday, in a gesture of inter-religious harmony in a country bordering the conflicts in Syria and Iraq.
Pope Francis begins a visit to Turkey on Friday with the delicate mission of strengthening ties with Muslim leaders while condemning violence against Christians and other minorities in the Middle East.
The end of communist rule in Europe, which began 25 years ago this month, was not all positive for Christianity because it brought tensions between Rome and Russia back to the surface, a senior Vatican official said on Monday.
Pope Francis on Wednesday expressed his sorrow at what he said is clearly the murder of 43 missing Mexican students, though the government has yet to officially declare them dead after their abduction and apparent massacre in the southwest of the country in late September.
More than a million Germans and people from around the world on Sunday celebrated the 25th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall, the event that more than any other marked the end of the Cold War.
Scientific theories including the "Big Bang" believed to have brought the universe into being 13.7 billion years ago and the idea that life developed through a process of evolution do not conflict with Catholic teaching, Pope Francis said on Tuesday.
Pope Francis, in his first major appointment in the hierarchy of the Catholic Church in the United States, on Saturday named Bishop Blase Cupich as the new archbishop of Chicago.
Pope Francis married 20 couples on Sunday, some of whom had already lived together and had children, in the latest sign that the Argentine pontiff wants the Catholic church to be more open and inclusive.
A former Polish archbishop and papal diplomat who was defrocked after allegations of paying children for sexual acts has lost his diplomatic immunity and could be tried in the Dominican Republic, the Vatican said.
According to Vatican spokesperson Father Federico Lombardi, the family had a 30-minute meeting with the pope at the latter's residence on Friday, and that the meeting was marked "affection" and "great serenity and joy."
The letter, which was read before the attending foreign ministers of Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador at a migration conference in Mexico City, read that Pope Francis is more concerned about the damage done to the growing tide of children migrating to US soil.
Vatican spokesman Federico Lombardi recently confirmed that Pope Francis might, and emphasis of the word "might," watch the final on Sunday between Argentina and Germany. On the other hand, he insisted that the pope will not be watching the match alongside with his German predecessor.
According to Vatican spokesman Reverend Federico Lombardi, the guests were met by the pope briefly on Sunday night, and later joined him for a private mass on the following morning. After the mass, each one of the guest reportedly had a private moment with the pop in his private apartment for around 30 minutes of informal discussions about their individual experiences, no doubt the ones from the hands of the pedophile priests.
