Asia - Pacific News

Cardinal Matteo Zuppi of Bologna, Italy.

Cardinal Zuppi meets with Chinese official to discuss peace in Ukraine

Sep 15, 2023

By Tyler Arnold

Cardinal Matteo Zuppi met with Chinese Special Representative for Eurasian Affairs Li Hui at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Read more

U.S. President Joe Biden and India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi pay respect at the Mahatma Gandhi memorial at Raj Ghat on the sidelines of the G20 summit in New Delhi on Sept. 10, 2023.

India’s Modi government invites Christian rights watchdog to discuss concerns 

Sep 15, 2023

By Anto Akkara

The head of the Christian human rights group had written to the prime minister’s office about three major grievances. Read more

Bishop Ignatius Kung Pin-Mei in 1949.

A profile in courage: Cardinal Kung and Catholic resistance in Shanghai  

Sep 8, 2023

By Matthew Santucci

Nearly 70 years after his arrest, Cardinal Ignatius Kung is remembered as he preached fidelity to the successor of Peter... Read more

Kolkata Archbishop Thomas D’Souza gives a message at the tomb of St. Teresa of Kolkata in the Missionaries of Charity motherhouse in Kolkata, India, after a Mass on her feast day, Sept. 5, 2023.

Mother Teresa is ‘teacher of love’ says Kolkata archbishop on anniversary of saint’s death

Sep 6, 2023

By Anto Akkara

The feast of St. Teresa of Kolkata was celebrated by Catholics and non-Catholics alike with Mass, prayers, tributes, and visits... Read more

Missionaries of Charity came to greet Pope Francis during his trip to Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia Sept. 1-4.

Pope Francis at Mongolia charity: ‘Only love can overcome selfishness’

Pope Francis blessed a new charity called the “House of Mercy” on his last day in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia. Read more

Cardinal Giorgio Marengo was one of the first to welcome Pope Francis to Mongolia on Sept. 1, 2023. Marengo is an Italian cardinal who has served as a missionary in Mongolia for nearly 20 years. He is the current apostolic prefect of Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, and the world’s youngest cardinal.

Live Updates: Pope Francis trip to Mongolia 2023

Sep 3, 2023

By CNA Staff

Live updates following Pope Francis’ trip to Mongolia from Aug. 31–Sept. 4. Read more

Catholics hold Chinese flags at Pope Francis' Mass in Mongolia's Steppe Arena in Ulaanbaatar on Sept. 4, 2023.

Catholics from mainland China and across Asia in Mongolia for Mass with Pope Francis

Sep 3, 2023

By Courtney Mares, Rachel Thomas

While papal Masses on the pope’s other trips can draw hundreds of thousands of people, the Mass in Ulaanbaatar only... Read more

Khamba Nomun Khan, the head of the Gandan Monastery in Ulaanbaatar, accompanied Pope Francis as he made his entrance at the interreligious dialogue event at the Hun Theater in Mongolia on Sept. 3, 2023.

Pope Francis quotes Buddha at interreligious event in Mongolia

Sep 2, 2023

By Courtney Mares

Pope Francis said Sunday that interreligious dialogue is “not antithetical to proclamation” but helps religious traditions to understand one another. Read more

Pope Francis meets with local priests and religious of Mongolia, which includes only 25 priests (19 religious and six diocesan), 33 women religious, and one bishop — Cardinal Giorgio Marengo — in Ulaanbaatar’s Cathedral of Sts. Peter and Paul on Sept. 2, 2023.

Pope Francis tells Mongolia’s tiny Catholic community that ‘God loves littleness’

Sep 2, 2023

By Rachel Thomas

“Brothers and sisters, do not be concerned about small numbers, limited success, or apparent irrelevance,” Pope Francis assured missionaries in... Read more

Pope Francis stands beside Mongolian President Ukhnaagiin Khürelsükh in Sukhbaatar Square in front of the State Palace in Ulaanbaatar on Sept. 2, 2023.

Pope Francis: ‘Mongolia is a symbol of religious freedom’

Sep 1, 2023

By Courtney Mares

Pope Francis called Mongolia a “symbol of religious freedom” in his first speech in the Asian country sandwiched between China... Read more

Schoolchildren eagerly wait for the pope’s arrival outside of the apostolic prefecture on Sept. 1, 2023, in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, where Pope Francis will be staying for the duration of his four-day visit to the country.

PHOTOS: Pope Francis’ first day in Mongolia

Sep 1, 2023

By Courtney Mares

Pope Francis received an enthusiastic welcome to Mongolia on Friday morning after a nearly 10-hour flight on the papal plane. Read more

Upon his arrival at Chinggis Khaan International Airport on Sept. 1, 2023, Pope Francis was welcomed with a bowl of Aaruul, dried curds which are a traditional food of Mongolian nomadic peoples.

Pope Francis becomes first pope in history to set foot in Mongolia

Aug 31, 2023

By Courtney Mares

The pope told journalists aboard the papal plane that to visit Mongolia is to encounter “a small people, but a... Read more

Pope Francis greets airline workers as he boards the papal plane for his four-day trip to Mongolia on Aug. 31, 2023.

Pope sends telegram to China as plane flies over Chinese airspace

Aug 31, 2023

By Tina Dennelly

Pope Francis will become the first pope in the history of the Catholic Church to visit Mongolia. Read more

Mongolian President Tsakhiagiin Elbegdorj walks past Republican Guards as he arrives before his meeting with French President Francois Hollande at the Elysee Palace on Nov. 19, 2015, in Paris.

Mongolia’s former president lauds country’s promotion of religious freedom

Aug 30, 2023

By Francesca Pollio Fenton

Mongolia is a nation where religious freedom and respect for human life are “fundamental” values, the country’s former president says. Read more

This picture taken on Jan. 16, 2022, shows a man watching smoke hanging over houses on a polluted day in Ulaanbaatar, the capital of Mongolia.

Pope Francis to visit one of the world’s most polluted capitals this week

Aug 28, 2023

By Courtney Mares

Pope Francis is likely to make “care for our common home” a key theme of his Mongolian trip this week... Read more

Father Isaac Honsan, pastor of St. Paul's Church, in Imphal, capital of Manipur state, stands in the rubble after the church was set on fire in a recent attack,

On Indian Independence Day, bishops reiterate Christians’ patriotism

Aug 16, 2023

By Anto Akkara

The Catholic Bishops’ Conference of India also called for “resolving internal challenges with empathy, understanding, and unity.” Read more

Pakistanis protest Nov. 2, 2018, in Lahore, shortly after the nation's supreme court acquitted Asia Bibi of blasphemy charges.

Pakistan’s legislature passes bill to increase blasphemy penalties to life in prison 

Aug 15, 2023

By Tyler Arnold

The legislation would set a maximum penalty of life in prison for blasphemy with a minimum sentence of 10 years... Read more

A group of South Koreans pray at World Youth Day 2023 in Lisbon, Portugal.

The challenges facing South Korea in organizing the next World Youth Day

Aug 12, 2023

By Nicolás de Cárdenas

One priest says that being designated the site of the next WYD is an opportunity “to spread faith in Christ”... Read more

A Catholic Church in Nagasaki, destroyed by the Aug. 9, 1945, atomic bombing of the city. Public domain

Atomic bomb dropped on Nagasaki killed two-thirds of the city’s Catholics 78 years ago

Aug 9, 2023

By Eduardo Berdejo

Since the 16th century, Nagasaki has been an important center of Catholicism in Japan, initially evangelized by Jesuit and Franciscan... Read more

Goa, the former Portuguese colony on the west coast of India, was evangelized by St. Francis Xavier whose mortal remains are preserved in the Bom Jesus Cathedral (pictured).

Hindu nationalists demand arrest of Catholic priest in India for saying king was not a god

Aug 9, 2023

By Anto Akkara

Hindu groups had staged demonstrations in front of the police station calling for criminal charges to be brought against Father... Read more