Browsing: Pope Francis

Pope Francis said Sunday he will make his first trip to the Holy Land, visiting Amman, Bethlehem and Jerusalem from May 24 to 26. “In the climate of joy typical of this Christmas period, I would like to announce that from May 24 to 26, God willing,…

A group of nuns in Spain got a New Year surprise when they checked their answerphone machine to discover they had missed a call from the Pope, who left a message asking why they didn’t pick up. “What can the nuns be doing that stops them answering the…

Pope Francis on Wednesday called for greater solidarity in the world in his first New Year blessing as pontiff in front of crowds of pilgrims on St Peter’s Square. “We all have a responsibility to act so that the world may be a community of brothers…

Pope Francis held his first Christmas Eve mass in the Vatican by highlighting the role played by humble shepherds in the Nativity, as thousands flocked to the historic site of Jesus’s birth in Bethlehem. At the service in St Peter’s Basilica, the 77…

Pope Francis on Thursday formed a committee to fight child sex abuse in the Catholic Church in a landmark initiative after thousands of abuses and cover-ups, but campaigners said the new body would be “toothless”. While the composition and precise tasks…

Pope Francis on Wednesday called for prayers for a group of nuns seized from their convent in Syria and for all hostages held in the war-torn country. “I invite you all to pray for the nuns of the Greek Orthodox convent of St Takla of Maalula in Syria…