Sep 26, 2018 - 06:33 am .- Pope Francis sent a message Wednesday to encourage Chinese Catholics to work toward reconciliation and communion with one another following a deal between the Vatican and China on the appointment of bishops.

Sep 26, 2018 - 02:34 am .- Despite the pain and suffering they have experienced, Catholics in the Baltic states can take hope in the steadfast care of the Virgin Mary, as depicted at the Gate of Dawn in Lithuania, Pope Francis said Wednesday.  

Sep 25, 2018 - 04:00 pm .- Pope Francis said Tuesday that renewed procedures and priorities in handling sex abuse cases have yielded results in the Church, and have developed alongside a greater moral awareness of the dangers of child abuse.

Sep 25, 2018 - 03:49 pm .- The following is an unofficial transcript of the in-flight press conference on the papal plane returning from Tallinn, Estonia to Rome on Sept. 25, 2018.

Sep 25, 2018 - 03:06 pm .- Pope Francis took responsibility Tuesday for the agreement between the Holy See and the People's Republic of China, noting that in any such negotiation, “both sides lose something.”

Sep 22, 2018 - 02:36 pm .- Traveling Saturday to Lithuania, Pope Francis joked that, in the eyes of some, Pope St. John Paul II is considered a saint while he himself is considered “a devil.”

Sep 22, 2018 - 06:22 am .- After the signing Saturday of a provisional Vatican-China deal on the nomination of bishops, the Vatican announced Pope Francis’ recognition of seven illicitly ordained Chinese bishops.

Sep 22, 2018 - 04:39 am .- An expected agreement between the Holy See and the People’s Republic of China on the appointment of bishops was signed Saturday in Beijing, the Vatican announced.

Sep 21, 2018 - 02:00 pm .- Pope Francis will arrive in Vilnius, Lithuania, on Sept. 22. During his first day in the city, the pope will take a walk in the streets of the Old City, and he will head toward the Gate of Dawn, one of the ancient points of access to the Lithuanian capital. There, he will pray the Rosary and deliver a speech before an icon of Mary Mother of Mercy.

Sep 21, 2018 - 09:21 am .- The Archbishop of Newark has announced that he will not attend an October gathering of bishops slated to discuss young adults and vocational discernment. The archbishop cited his pastoral obligations in the archdiocese amid the U.S. Church’s ongoing sexual abuse crisis.

Sep 20, 2018 - 05:21 pm .- All people have a responsibility to fight new forms of racism in the modern world, Pope Francis told more than 200 participants at a Rome-based conference this week.

Sep 20, 2018 - 05:00 pm .- The Archbishop of New York said Thursday that while he has confidence in the way Pope Francis is handling the Church’s ongoing sexual abuse crisis, he has grown “impatient” while awaiting a decision from the pope on a request made by U.S. bishops more than one month ago.

Sep 20, 2018 - 12:01 pm .- A coalition of secular and dissenting Catholic LGBT groups aims to influence the Church’s upcoming Synod on Young People by rallying the like-minded to write to the synod to contend that the “rules” of the Catholic Church are causing “damage” to those who self-identify as LGBT.

Sep 20, 2018 - 09:35 am .- The private correspondence, excerpts from which were carried in a German newspaper, was reportedly addressed to Cardinal Walter Brandmüller.

Sep 19, 2018 - 01:10 pm .- Something must be done - this is the consensus of cardinals, bishops, priests, and laity as the Church continues to grapple with the fallout of the sexual abuse crisis. What, exactly, will be done remains to be seen.

Sep 19, 2018 - 10:50 am .- U2 front man Bono had a private audience with Pope Francis at the Vatican Wednesday afternoon, saying afterward the Holy Father was “incredibly gracious with his time, his concentration.”

Sep 19, 2018 - 05:17 am .- There are many saints who demonstrate that even if one comes from a difficult childhood, or does not have good parents, hope can still be found in Christ and the mission received from him, Pope Francis said Wednesday.  

Sep 19, 2018 - 12:00 am .- According to Archbishop Charles Scicluna, the pope’s recent decision to call to Rome the presidents of bishops’ conferences from around the world is a sign that prevention of abuse and protection of minors must be a concern for the entire Church.

Sep 18, 2018 - 05:45 pm .- A newspaper tied to the Chinese Communist Party reported Tuesday that a delegation of Vatican officials will head to China "in late September" for a final round of talks before an agreement on the appointment of bishops is signed.  

Sep 18, 2018 - 10:21 am .- The Synod of Bishops announced Tuesday that the upcoming assembly of bishops will include a meeting of young people with Pope Francis and the Synod Fathers in the Vatican’s Pope Paul VI hall.