By Kristine Daguno-Bersamina Manila, Sept 17, 2023: Pope Francis has removed a Filipino priest due to allegations of child sexual abuse, according to the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP). The pontiff’s decision to defrock Father Pio Aclon from Borongan, Eastern Samar, was announced September 17 by the DioceseContinue Reading
Vatican City, Sept 11, 2023: Hollywood star Sylvester Stallone had an unexpected encounter at The Vatican September 8, when he learned that Pope Francis is a devoted fan of his films. Accompanied by his family and brother, Stallone was introduced to the Pope in a meeting captured and shared onContinue Reading
By Stanislaus Alla New Delhi, Sept 10, 2026: Pope Francis will hold a virtual dialogue with select groups of students from South Asia and the conversation will be live-streamed via YouTube and will be accessible in English, Spanish and Hindi. The Vatican News reports that the event of Building BridgesContinue Reading
The Vatican released Pope Francis’s four-day schedule for the first papal visit to Mongolia in September, where the pontiff will meet with government leaders, engage in interreligious dialogue and celebrate Mass for the country’s small Catholic population. Mongolia, a landlocked country situated between China and Russia, is home to aboutContinue Reading
The Vatican announced July 5 the creation of a commission to research and catalog the stories of Christian martyrs from the third millennium. In a letter published July 5, Pope Francis said he has established the “Commission of New Martyrs — Witnesses of the Faith” within the Dicastery for theContinue Reading
By Agnes Aineah Nairobi, June 29, 2023: Sister Gloria Cecilia Narváez Argoti, a Catholic missionary abducted in the west African country of Mali, describes her five-year-captivity as “spiritually transformative” and a blessing in her life. The Colombian nun was abducted in February 2017 in Southern Mali by what was laterContinue Reading
New York, June 27, 2023: Religious freedom has continued to decline across the world with Asia remaining a region for particular concerns, says a report from papal charity, Aid to the Church in Need (ACN). The ACN’s latest religious freedom report found that 61 out of 196 countries surveyed completelyContinue Reading
By Elisabetta Povoledo Vatican City, June 25, 2023: Pope Francis on June 25 marked the 40th anniversary of the kidnapping of Emanuela Orlandi, the 15-year-old daughter of a Vatican employee. Emmanuela’s disappearance remains one of Italy’s most enduring mysteries and recently was the subject of a Netflix series. In remarksContinue Reading
By Deborah Castellano Lubov Vatican City, June 25, 2023: Pope Francis has reminded journalists of their important role of responsibly and ethically informing and educating future generations. He said this June 24 while receiving a delegation of the “Biagio Agnes” international journalism prize in the Vatican. He delivered those presentContinue Reading
By Andres Serrano Vatican City, June 24, 2023: Pope Francis on June 23 praised artists as true visionaries who can see, dream and invent as he welcomed 200 artists, filmmakers and writers into the Sistine Chapel to mark the 50th anniversary of the Vatican Museums’ contemporary art collection. The PopeContinue Reading